


w o n k u o y n a h t n o i t c e f f a e r o m d e e n I

by Aurya



Series: Sea and Sky [1]
Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Characters in Disney worlds will not be tagged, Colossal KHIII spoilers, Contemplation of Suicide, Don't read it even if you have, Don't read it if you haven't beaten the game, Gen, Mentions of Suicide, Protagonist in Mourning, SO SAD, Sad, saaaaaaad, sad fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-10
Updated: 2019-02-26
Packaged: 2019-10-25 09:15:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 56,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17722388
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aurya/pseuds/Aurya
Summary: Thinking of you, wherever you are-no matter how long you've been gone.We pray for our sorrows to end-knowing that this wound can never heal.And we hope that our hearts will blend-because you are with us forever, and that will bring you a little closer.Now I will step forward to realize this wish-or to drown in my tears because it can never be.





	1. Departure

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't tell Draco. EVER this time.
> 
> Most people who want to cover Sanctuary record Utada's reverse bits separately and play them backwards in editing. Most people who sing along to Sanctuary (or just sing Sanctuary because it's stuck in their heads) remain quiet during Utada's reverse bits. Most people who want to try and pronounce the unpronounceable play a recording at 0.1x speed and try to vocalize it that way.
> 
> My boyfriend is not like most people. He decided to stand in the middle of the kitchen and verbally work out how to say -I need more affection than you know- backwards, one word at a time. Now, if I hold up a recorder to his mouth when he says -ohn uui nath noshceffa rohm deenai- and then play it in reverse, it actually sounds enough like -I need more affection than you know- that you would think the speaker is just unused to English.
> 
> The things a guy does when he is trying to keep out a memory.
> 
> Draco got KHIII on the launch date (and almost broke his arm when he slipped on the way out of the store), powered through it in two days, and then BROKE DOWN CRYING when the credits rolled. I've seen tears get in his eyes from a sad end, but he has NEVER shut down and cried, tears flowing, from a game before and he always hates himself for it. And now this one comes along, and he could barely speak for an hour. He threw himself onto his bed, wept, then put himself in the shower to nurse the arm and wept again. He disconnected himself from the PS4 for a few days, searched for the unlock conditions for the secret movie, found a guide to find all the Lucky Emblems, and then went full hardcore to unlock it. And that secret movie just turned out to be Nomura's usual teaser mindfrick, so when the shock wore off he wept some more.
> 
> I'm gonna be honest, my emotions weren't all that different from his, and I was playing mission control for the unlock play. But having that effect on him means that he absolutely cannot know about this thing or so help me, because this thing runs off that sad end and I really don't want to force that memory to hold prominence too long.

"Kairi!"

Riku's voice echoing across the sunset cove snapped Kairi out of her reverie; she turned towards the race course to find him dashing towards her, looking panicked. "Riku. Is something wrong?"

"That's what I wanna know," Riku admitted, slow to a stop as he drew near. "I haven't seen you all day. I tried to call your Gummiphone, but..."

He fell quiet in confusion, and Kairi knew why. The things a year and a half on adventure after adventure will do to a person's memory. When Kairi had returned to the Destiny Islands, back when the door to darkness had been closed, she had been on her own, and remained that way until she left again; when she had returned again, after Xemnas' first defeat, only a few days had passed before Sora and Riku had been summoned by the King's letter. During that time, their clashes had been of the swordplay variety; and since then, Riku had not much been clashing with anyone. Kairi didn't know, for sure, that he had  _ever_ been in this cove since the day before the islands fell to darkness.

And if he hadn't been there since they had finished their preparations with the raft, she didn't blame him for having taken a moment to realize there was still a raft there.

Realizing an incongruity in his words, she reached into her pocket, drawing out her Gummiphone. "It hasn't gone off," she observed, drawing Riku's attention back to her. "I don't know why I wouldn't- Ah." She sighed. "I... must've picked up Sora's this morning."

"I see." Riku's gaze went to the raft again; it wasn't just that it was present, but it seemed to be  _packed_ \- food and drink were stored in a pack kept against the mast, not all too differently than they had packed it for their ill-advised voyage, all that time ago. "Kairi... what is that doing here?"

"I've been here working on this all day," Kairi explained.

Riku's jaw fell.

A small smile rose on Kairi's face as she smacked his arm. "I didn't do it by hand," she informed him. "I learned a lot of magic while me and Axel were training." The smile fell as she turned back to the raft. "The last time we did this, it... got destroyed when the storm hit. But I still remembered enough of it to make a new one." She stepped towards it. "I... thought I'd take it for a ride."

"Kairi..." Riku shook his head. "You're not going to-"

"What?" Kairi asked. "Are you worried I'll just ride it out and let it sink?"

"Please tell me you won't," Riku begged.

"...I'd be lying if I said I hadn't thought of it," Kairi admitted. "But, no. I won't. I just..." She sighed, setting her hand on the mast. "I wanted to go on a sort of... memorial trip."

Riku stepped up to her, touching her arm lightly. "...For Sora, you mean?"

"Yeah. I mean..." She turned to face him again. "Sora has been on so many adventures - and so have you. You two have been to so many worlds. And I've always ended up on the sidelines. How many worlds have I seen? I can probably count them on one hand." She began to mark with her fingers as she spoke. "Hollow Bastion, Traverse Town... Twilight Town, the old Organization's castle... and the Keyblade Graveyard."

Kairi let her gaze fall. "I want to see the worlds that Sora has seen. I want to meet the people who were part of his heart. And I want to become part of theirs."

Tears began to trail down her face.

"Because that'll get me a little closer to him."

Their connection was all the prompting they needed; Kairi took a single step towards Riku, and Riku quickly caught her, wrapping his arms around her as she buried her face in his shoulder, letting the tears flow. He did not try to comfort her with hollow words; Sora's fade had affected everyone, there was no uncertainty about that, but Kairi had far and away been hit the hardest, and trying to lift her spirits would only sink them deeper.

"You don't want any company?" Riku asked, when the flow of their tears eventually slowed.

Kairi shook her head, pulling away with a weak sniffle. "No," she insisted. "I need to do this for myself."

Riku nodded, not making to object. "Then at least let me help you push off."

They got the raft out onto the water in short order; once it was floating properly, Kairi climbed aboard, and Riku gave it one more good push to get it out onto the open water. "If you're worried, call me," Kairi assured him. "I won't leave you hanging."

"Alright," Riku confirmed. "May your heart be your guiding key."

"Sorry?"

Riku chuckled. "It's something Mickey said to me while we were looking for Aqua," he said. The wind was starting to catch the sail, and he raised his voice to make sure she could still hear him. "If you're ever unsure where to go next, just trust in your heart."

"I will."

Destiny's Embrace appeared in her right hand; with a whispered word, the winds around her intensified, hastening the raft out to the open sea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Draco always complains about in-continuity KH fanfics screaming to get proven impossible, and I'm not going to pretend to be exempt. This thing is going to disregard the Epilogue, the Secret Movie, and anything else that Nomura might have up his sleeves with no remorse whatsoever.  
> [Post-completion edit: by 'disregard the Epilogue', I mean 'it's not relevant', and by 'disregard the Secret Movie', I mean 'I'm a pessimist who assumes Sora's gonna get erased'; this thing should still fit into canon as it stands without trouble]
> 
> [EDIT]  
> Draco's first words to me the morning after I had submitted Chapter 11: "I think I know why people write sad stories." DESPAIR. Yeah, my three tags and rant that you guys not tell Draco? Totally forgot to account for the fact that he reads my AO3 page. Last time I said 'Don't tell Draco', I was writing a trollfic in a hurry because he kind of banishes himself from the internet when he gets really into a game, and I knew that he was gonna come by sooner or later and discover it so I wanted to have the ruiner done before he did. Plus my Aura X-Y pseud is for when he is MY COWRITER, and one of the works we've currently got under it kind of has an implicit promise of getting updated sooner or later. Expecting him to not find this thing? "I think you just played keep-away with the #IdiotBall" indeed. I mean, I guess technically I could've changed the publication date so it was listed as the oldest thing I've written and bury it on the last page of my works list, but that would mean making it highly unlikely to be read by anyone ELSE, either.
> 
> At least he doesn't hate me for focusing on the sad end. Actually, between his self-deprecation over his novelizations and the Death Battle channel posting a video titled 'Does Kingdom Hearts 3 suck?' like a pile of douchebags, he's just glad I accept the sad end for what it is.


	2. Wonder

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Totally not gonna blame anybody if I get a lack of readers, because I don't even know what possessed me to WRITE this thing, let alone what would have to seize anyone to READ it with those tags.

_Dear Sora,_  
_I've decided to set out on a journey of my own. I know that, despite everything that happened, you don't regret the adventures you've gone on with Donald and Goofy - I know you never have. I could never forgive myself if I spent my time without you envious of your journeys._  
_And I want to meet the people you've met. I want to touch the hearts that you've touched. Part of it is a hope that, if I do, I can find a way to bring you back, somehow. But even if I can't, I know that I'll be able to see the way that you've influenced others._  
_Your smile could illuminate the realm of darkness. I'm convinced that there isn't a life you've been a part of that isn't all the better for a meeting with you - at least not that has any kindness in it. I want to keep that light in my life._  
_Love, Kairi_

Kairi closed her notepad, tucking it back into the pack against the mast and drawing out a mushroom. As the sun had set on the Destiny Islands, she had asked her Keyblade to guide her from the world she called her home; the open blue waters, and the heavens lit orange by dusk, had vanished from around her. Now, she sailed on the Ocean Between; the raft seemed to float on a sea of stardust, with worlds little more than specks of light in the distance, and above her extended an eternal starry sky, one which gave her a solemn comfort gazing upon it.

There were many worlds, but they shared that same sky.

Nibbling on the mushroom, she drew out her Gummiphone -  _Sora's_ Gummiphone, rather, as she realized she had not thought to correct her mistake before she had departed. As she tapped through its menu, she found a few jot notes that Sora had made during his last adventure; none of them seemed to have been meant to serve any serious purpose, and as she browsed she found one of them appeared to be an idle attempt at poetry.

_I wander as I wonder where the first princess could be  
And whether or not she does ever wonder about me_

"Wonder...?"

A light began to shine bright before her; she raised her gaze to find a world looming ahead, without much warning, and she set the Gummiphone into her pocket, holding tight to the mast as she sailed into the glow.

* * *

When the light faded, her raft had been run aground.

Well, maybe 'run aground' wasn't quite accurate on a voyage between worlds - as Kairi glanced around, there didn't seem to be any water in the area, dashing her hopes of her vessel being inconspicuous. She was standing in a contained room - a circular area with a path leading forward. An idle glance upward revealed the circular area was  _towering_ , extending so high she couldn't make out the roof, and its walls seemed to be a storage method that she could not understand anyone making use of.

A smile rose on Kairi's face. "Weird," she mused.

She started forward - and found herself nearly tripped up by a small white figure in a red coat. Stumbling, Kairi realized it appeared to be a  _rabbit_ ; in one hand was a golden pocketwatch that seemed a bit big to fit in any pockets on his person; his voice cried out, "I'm late! I'm late! I simply must get back! Dear me! I musn't make Her Highness wait!"

"Huh." Kairi raised an eyebrow. "What's got him in a hurry?"

At the end of the path leading out of that circular room was a door, behind which was... another door, behind which was another. Getting that third door open took her to what seemed to be a home for someone on hard times; a small table sat in the center, with a chair before it, and to her right side was a fireplace and stove. Sitting next to a fireplace was a small pot, above which was a water tap; opposite the kitchenry was a bed that seemed to be set into the wall, with a couple floor-level chairs past its foot that looked a good deal more comfortable than the seat at the table. A few very bright lights were arranged around the room, including a lamp on the table; the end result was that the table was casting a rather dark shadow on the floor.

The  _click_ of a latch drew her attention to the other side of the table; sitting against the ground was a very small wooden door, with a golden doorknob and hinges, and as Kairi's gaze found it, it seemed to be  _closing_ rather abruptly.

Kairi stepped around the table, dropping to one knee to get a good look at the door. "Weirder and weirder."

"How rude!"

A yelp emerged from Kairi as she stumbled back; the doorknob had  _moved_ , a pair of eyes opening on the plate to which it was affixed as what she presumed to be a keyhole widened and warped in the manner of a mouth. "Woah," she murmured. "A... talking doorknob?"

The doorknob's keyhole stretched wide as he yawned. "And a rather sleepy doorknob, at that," he confirmed. "Whatever are you doing here?"

"Did someone happen to... come through?" Kairi asked, uncertain.

"Yes," the doorknob sighed, "but you're a touch too big to do the same. You might want to drink from the bottle there..." he yawned again before finishing, "...if you mean to try."

"Bottle?"

Kairi turned towards the table to find a small pair of white bottles sitting upon its surface. Both had coloured labels showing a small plant sprout and a leafy tree; one was red, with an arrow going from the tree to the sprout, and one was blue, from sprout to tree.

When she turned to the doorknob again, he seemed to have gone back to sleep.

Having reached a point of great curiosity, Kairi stood up again and approached the bottles; she picked up the red one, finding it to contain a strange red liquid. Reasoning that  _nothing_ could taste worse than a bar of sea-salt ice cream that she had  _thought_  she had impaled in the beach without touching tide or shore, Kairi braced herself and raised the bottle to her lips, taking a good mouthful of the drink.

It didn't seem to have any flavour at all.

She was in the middle of setting the bottle back down when a strange  _mist_  began to puff up around her; her fingers involuntarily released the bottle (thankfully it had only been a few centimetres off the table), and she felt her arm connect with the tabletop... and then drag across the tabletop, until it had been lifted upon her head.

When the smoke faded, Kairi quickly realized what the label was for; she was now so small as to wonder whether she would be capable of climbing the chair and then getting atop the table. "Wow," she murmured. "Yeah, I guess that does help. Thanks for..."

Turning back to the doorknob again only got a snore in response.

"...the advice," Kairi murmured.

A shifting behind her drew her attention back to the table - or rather, the table's shadow. A black shape had appeared within the shade, and Kairi stumbled back in surprise as it rose out of the ground. It looked humanoid, but Kairi knew better than to assume it was human - that jet-black body and the glowing yellow eyes could only be a Heartless, and further, the jagged antennae and veiny shapes across its limbs (albeit blue rather than red) were of a Heartless she knew.

Golden light shone from her hand as Destiny's Embrace appeared in her grip. "Natch."

She swept her Keyblade forward as the Heartless poised to lunge at her; a pearl of light flew from the tip of her weapon, striking her foe in the chest and causing it to stumble back. Kairi proceeded to dash around the table; a Keyblade was a tempting target for Heartless, and she was hoping it would prevent the doorknob from being at risk. And indeed it did - a pool of darkness expanded beneath the Heartless' feet, into which it dove, and Kairi found a similar pool opening beneath her, prompting her to leap aside as her opponent leapt out, landing with a splash that Kairi was able to repel with her Keyblade.

Another Pearl flew from her Key, striking it between its eyes, and as it stumbled Kairi glanced around the room for high ground at which she could deal it meaningful blows. The table was ruled out immediately - a slash of this thing's claws could destroy the potion bottles - and the stovetop stood higher than she trusted her ability to jump with an enemy bearing down on her. The next highest point was the pot beneath the tap; Kairi quickly dashed towards it, leaping up to it and landing on its rim, find it was full enough to stand sturdy.

She turned back to the Heartless as it approached her, and when it made to swipe her with its claws, she met it with a swing of her Keyblade.

The Heartless's claws bounced back slightly. Kairi, however, was sent reeling; the size difference meant that trying to parry this thing was a massively bad idea. As she tried to right herself, her footing on the rim of the pot slipped, and a yelp escaped her as she fell into the water of the pot almost upright. That gave her a more hydrodynamic profile than she would have liked - which begged the question of why she didn't strike the  _bottom_ of the pot.

Destiny's Embrace vanished from her grip, and she made to swim up to the surface.

She did not surface in the room she had left.

Kairi was very confused. She was now floating in a small pool of water in the middle of a forest - a forest of similar scale to the room she had drank the shrinking potions. Uncertainly, she seized the rim of the pool and dragged herself onto dry land, flinging most of the water off of her; with a sigh, she reached for her hood and found it filled with water. "Wonderful," she muttered, making to invert the hood and leaving its contents splashing to the ground behind her.

After reorienting it, her Keyblade returned to her grip, and a blaze of Fire magic appeared on the tip; the flame soared closely around her, its heat quickly drying her clothes before dispersing in the air before her. Lea had shown her this during their training (the old Organization's world alternated between 'empty night skies' and 'downpour like no one can enjoy'), and although Kairi had laughed at the idea of needing it at the time, now she was grateful for his sharing it during a bout of quietude.

"Best be careful playing with fire."

The voice from nearby drew her attention; something had appeared just a few steps away from her. It was a  _head_ \- a feline head, with the widest grin Kairi had ever seen - and it didn't seem to be attached to anything, bouncing back and forth against nothing as it spoke. "If you're not too careful, you could end up burning things away. Wouldn't you hate to reveal things best left... unseen?"

The head ceased its bouncing as something else faded in beneath it - a pinstriped feline body in pink and purple. Confused, Kairi lowered her Keyblade. "A teleporting cat?" she murmured.

"A Cheshire Cat, actually," the newcomer insisted. "But also, yes."

Kairi blinked. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"What indeed?" the Cat inquired. "It might well mean whatever you like. Or it could possibly mean everything you wouldn't."

"That doesn't make anything resembling sense," Kairi accused.

"Well, you can't expect sense to be _made_ ," the Cat reprimanded. "There's no point in making something that already exists. Better to simply acquire it from where it can be found."

Kairi aimed her Keyblade at him. "Would you shut up?"

The Cat tapped its hands against each other. "You ask something that cannot be done," he mused. "Least not that will stay that way. If I shut up for you, I might end up shutting  _down_ for someone else. And then if  _they_ ask me to shut up, then I'll have shut back down for you and we're just where we started."

"How does that work?"

"Oh, don't you know?" the Cat asked, starting to march in place. "Ever since the shadows were cast, the first is last, but turned around. Everyone found in Wonderland finds it grand to see from another view. What of you?"

"Wonderland?" Kairi echoed. "Wonder..."  _Wait, Sora's little poem. A princess that wonders..._ "Say," she inquired, "are there any princesses in Wonderland?"

"Princesses? Oh, no no no," the Cat insisted. "There would never be a Princess. The Queen would never allow it."

Her gaze narrowed. "There's a Queen, though," Kairi observed.

"Just so!" the Cat confirmed. "All of Wonderland knows the Queen of Hearts." He lay himself down on the ground, and Kairi could have sworn his tail detached from him. "But best beware you don't get her to start..."

The tail swept forward, and the Cat vanished as it passed; then the tail faded into the air.

Kairi was left staring at the point where the Cat had been for a moment; then she turned towards the forest. "A Queen of Hearts..."

* * *

Travelling through the forest revealed that the giant red Neoshadow she'd met in the room with the potion wasn't an isolated individual; Wonderland seemed to be a popular location for Heartless of the short, magical variety. Eventually, however, she found herself coming out in a garden-like area that seemed to be set up like a courtroom. At what would be the judge's podium was seated a rather rotund woman in black and red attire; in one hand was what seemed to be a heart-shaped fan, and atop her head was a golden crown.

Gathered around the court were several figures which appeared to be armed _playing cards_ ; some carried axes of black metal, while others carried polearms with heart-shaped blades. To Kairi's surprise, the rabbit in the red coat was standing atop a staircase not far from the podium, and was speaking rapidly to the woman in the judge's seat. As the Keyblade wielder was contemplating whether this was who she was looking for, the judge seemed to take notice of her; Kairi's thoughts were interrupted by a loud yell of "Halt! Who goes there?"

Kairi sucked in a breath through her teeth, stepping forward as she responded. "I'm sorry to bother you. I was just passing through."

"How dare you!?" the judge protested. "You think you can simply pass through my court as you please? I demand you stand trial immediately!"

"Stand  _trial?_ " Kairi echoed. "Why? I haven't done anything wrong."

The judge huffed. "You would dare defy me?! Article 29: Anyone who defies the Queen is guilty!"

" **Queen**!?"

"Cards!" the Queen barked. "Off with her head!"

The cards turned towards Kairi, and she quickly stepped back in a panic. "That can't be good..."

She quickly sprinted out towards the nearest exit - which turned out to  _not_ lead back to the massive forest she'd come in through. An open garden that looked to serve as something of an intersection lay beyond, and after a moment's hesitation Kairi turned right, dashing into what lay beyond. What she found was a hedge maze scattered with red roses, whose hedges were a good deal thicker and more sturdily-grown than she wanted to risk breaking through; she began to sprint through the maze, hoping its winding path would keep the cards off her tail.

Eventually, she was able to duck into a crook of the maze, her breaths shallow as she listened for the sound of her pursuers.

...Nothing.

With a relieved sigh, Kairi found the hedges able to support her weight and leaned against one to catch her breath. "Queen of Hearts, my behind," she muttered. "I mean, that's not  _darkness_ , really, but she's not a pure light, either."

"Oh, tell me you didn't see her so much you didn't see anything else."

The voice from nearby drew her attention as the Cheshire Cat appeared again; he seemed to be lying on his belly down the side of the hedge, his tail above him, but his head was aimed to grin at Kairi.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Of what a ruler is described depends on whose allegiance with her lies," the Cat explained. "She is the Queen of Hearts, and all the Hearts of Wonderland will cower to her command."

"So... what," Kairi protested, "you're saying she rules this place with an iron fist?"

"No no no," the Cat insisted, waving his tail back and forth. "That would be rather unwieldly, wouldn't it? A steel hand you can never unclench? She would never let it be!" His hind paws began to reach side to side. "All the shadows running around have taken her patience and thrown it away! But the strong lights have been lit, and so the shadows have been permit to play."

Kairi felt like that struck a memory. "Strong lights?" She remembered the room with the potions. "Those lamps... You mean those are responsible for the Heartless running around?"

"Yes, are they?" the Cat wondered. "Or aren't they?"

"Well, which is it?" Kairi demanded.

The Cat's head bobbed up and down - somewhat disconcerting, as the rest of his body failed to move. "Which, indeed. I wonder if you wonder how to find out."

With a hum, Kairi set a hand on her chin. "I could just break the lamps," she observed, "but that seems like a good way to burn the room down. I've gotta find a way to turn them off first. But they didn't look like they had any switches around."

"Ah," the Cat mused, "but did you actually look around?" His body started to fade out - tail, then hind legs, and then his torso, leaving his forelegs crossed under his chin. "You seemed surprised to hear that down was up..."

His head vanished, and his forelegs shrugged before following suit.

Kairi sighed. "Nothing resembling a straight answer," she complained. "I'm gonna have to get a better look at Wonderland..."

* * *

The cards had gone on patrol, but Kairi found her way back to the upscaled forest without too much difficulty. After a good moment, she came to the realization that the forest wasn't proper  _forestry_ ; it seemed to be contained as though in a very spacious room, with fully defined walls and a proper ceiling instead of a sky.

That gave Kairi much cause for concern; it almost seemed as though this world did not share the same sky.

Eventually, she found herself stepping into a hollow in the high branches of a tree; to her abrupt surprise, she found herself coming out in the room where the potions lay. Now she understood what the Cheshire Cat had spoken of when he said up was down - she was standing on the wall of the room, looking at it from ninety degrees.

There was another such strange passage elsewhere on the room; when she went through that, she found herself stepping out into another hedge maze - this one with white roses rather than red. The cards were on patrol here, as well, but slipping through them revealed a sequence of strange switches scattered on the ground; each had a small white light upon it, and making contact with it with her Keyblade ended up putting it out.

As she tripped the fourth one, she found the Cheshire Cat fading in before her again - this time, his body seemed to be dancing atop his head. "Oh, wonderful! How simply wonderful! You've put out the lights, and now the shadow's been uncast! What a blast!"

Kairi raised an eyebrow at him. "You mean the Heartless aren't around anymore?" she asked.

"I wouldn't say that," the Cat insisted, picking up his head and setting it atop his shoulders again. "But then, I also  _would_ say that. Which would you prefer?"

"I would prefer if you stopped talking in riddles," Kairi protested.

"Without such strong lights, the dark shadow's gone and faded away," the Cat mused. "But there's already a bunch of smaller lights, and they're casting weaker shadows about. Still, Wonderland's all the brighter for it. Best not test your luck!"

He faded out again, leaving Kairi to sigh.  _That cat is pure cryptography,_ she observed.  _And the Queen of Hearts... I don't think Sora's had anything to do with this world. I have to get out of here. And that means... I need to get back to the raft._

Hoping that perhaps this maze was connected somehow to the maze she had first arrived in from the courtroom, Kairi continued ducking through the patrol. She was almost clear when a yell of "Hold it!" caught her from behind; worried, she turned towards the sound to find one of the spearman cards approaching her.

Upon his front side were three heart shapes, arranged in a vertical line.

"Hearts..." Kairi murmured as he came to a stop before her. She remembered what the Cat had said to her after she had first fled the courtroom. "Of what a ruler is described depends on whose allegiance with her lies... Queen of Hearts..." With a groan, she set her hands against her face. "Oh, χ-blade, I've been running around Wonderland for no reason at all!"

"Running around?" the card soldier protested. He aimed his spear at her. "You're the intruder the Queen's after?"

"I am not in the mood," Kairi snapped; and she quickly turned on her heel, charging out of the hedge maze.

That took her to a familiar clearing - the place where she had first ducked into the courtroom. Realizing she hadn't come out of the same maze she'd gone in, the rectangular shape of the clearing meant the red-rose maze was clear ahead of her; that put the Queen's court on her right, so she charged to the left as fast as her feet would take her. To her relief, this put her in the potions room, under the bed she had seen, and she was dashing towards the table when something began to appear across the floor around her.

A full dozen Shadows - far larger than the normal variety, but still considerably smaller than the red-veined Neoshadow she'd seen earlier.

Destiny's Embrace appeared in Kairi's grip, and she threw a couple Pearls at the nearest two before leaping aside. The light magic shattered the Heartless they struck, and the next one to draw near met a swing of her Keyblade, shattering into smoke. Another swipe was defended against, and Kairi brought her Key into a spinning blow to strike the attacker and its immediate follower. Another sweep of her weapon threw a shard of Blizzaga at another Heartless that was close to two more, the burst of icy blades eliminating all three; a blast of Firaga broke another one, and a storm of Thundaga stunned the last three long enough for Kairi to strike each down with a swing.

"This way!" The voice from the route she had come in told her the card soldiers were hot on her trail. "She couldn't have gotten too far!"

A panicked glance at the doorknob revealed that he was still sleeping; Kairi quickly dashed towards the fireplace and found it thankfully ash-free, hiding around the build and hoping the deck wouldn't look in here. The cards quickly dealt out in the room outside, searching everywhere but the place that mattered; it wasn't long before the soldiers were panicking, one of them voicing concerns that the Queen of Hearts would have  _their_ heads. For a brief moment, Kairi feared for them being punished just for her own ability to get away, and considered showing herself and accepting the Queen's trial; but then she remembered that the Queen had meant to execute her simply for walking through, and then she refused to turn herself in.

In time, the soldiers surrendered to her lack of presence; conceding that she must have taken off somewhere else, they departed the room. Kairi breathed a sigh of relief, raising her gaze skyward idly - and she spied something out the top of the chimney.

Starlight.

A small smile rose on Kairi's face. _There's the sky I was looking for._

* * *

A quick sip of the liquid in the blue bottle had Kairi back at her normal size; she made her way back out through the triple doors and was approaching the raft again when a voice echoed around the passage.

"Oh my, oh me! What excitement! What fun!" The Cheshire Cat faded in before her, clapping its forepaws to one side and then to the other. "I've not seen a chase like that since Alice was taken!"

Kairi double-took. "Did you say Alice?"

"Just so!" the Cat confirmed. "She wandered her way into Wonderland from the rabbit hole above!" He swirled one hand to his size, pointing above him. "The Queen was furious at her, as well - just as she was furious at you! There must be something your hearts have in common, if they so anger the Queen!" He shook his head. "But she was taken away, into the darkness - and no, we've never seen her again! Nor do I think we will, least not so long as she does not see any burns herself."

"Taken and never seen again?" Kairi's gaze fell.  _Alice was one of the old Princesses of Heart. After that deal with the door to darkness, everyone was sent back to their home worlds..._ Her gaze went up the rabbit hole. _If she didn't come back here, that means this isn't her home. This world must be closely linked with another._

"But there's something different about you." The Cat's voice drew Kairi back to the present. "You didn't just wander in, did you? You came here on purpose. Maybe you'll come in here again - so we'll get to see you once more!"

A light laugh emerged from Kairi. "No offense," she insisted, "but you'll be the last person I want to see." She drew her Keyblade and made to step past him, intending to board her raft.

"Oh? But is sea not closely linked to sky?"

Kairi stumbled at that, turning to face the Cat again. "Sky?" she asked. "What do you mean?"

The Cat's tail curled at his side, and then pointed at Destiny's Embrace. "That silly key hasn't unlocked anything," he observed. "Wonderland had another visitor while Alice was on trial - and he had another silly key just like that."

"Sora!" Kairi glanced down at her Keyblade. "He did come here?"

"He did indeed," the Cat mused. "But like Alice, he left once," - at this point, the Cat began to fade away once more - "and he's never come back since..."

Kairi found herself alone in the rabbit hole as the last echo of the Cat's words faded out.

 _World like this, I'm not surprised he's never come back,_ she observed.  _This whole place is mad. That Queen of Hearts... she's not dark, not really, but she's not nice, either. And the cards just obey her without barely thinking. But that cat..._ Her thoughts went back to the conversations she'd had with him.  _He was talking in riddles the whole while, but I don't think he was just stringing me along. It almost sounded like he was trying to help me._

A weak smile rose on her face.  _Sora must've touched his heart - one way or another._

She closed her eyes, a single tear trailing down her face.  _And it looks like he's the only heart here that was willing to let anyone touch._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Taking liberties with the Wonderland layout because the whole series has some mapping inconsistency but this world takes it to a new level.


	3. Heroism

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Naminé's bit during the ending was her waking up in Radiant Garden and then Riku immediately picking her up for the Destiny Islands party, so we don't have any concrete evidence about where she is post-KHIII. My headcanon is that she's on the Islands because she and Riku seem to have a thing (not necessarily a romantic thing, mind).
> 
> Draco PROBABLY thinks she's in Twilight Town, but I don't wanna ask him outright because I don't think he'll give me a straight answer. On one hand, he ships Xion/Roxas/Naminé as a threesome, so I think that means he puts her in Twilight. On the other hand, he had to reevaluate his opinion on long-distance relationships after KHIII, and he's a blushing yuri fan who can't say 'yuri' at normal speaking volume, so I think he might have her on the Islands, too.

A tune from her pocket interrupted Kairi in the middle of her enjoying a Fire-roasted fish; she drew out Sora's Gummiphone to find a call waiting. Remembering her promise to not ignore Riku's calls, she quickly lowered her seafood and tapped the screen to answer it, holding the phone up before her.

With a flicker of the screen, a blonde-framed face appeared.  _"Kairi?"_

Surprise decorated Kairi's face before she could try to hide it. "Naminé? Hi!" She offered her Nobody a smile. "Whose phone are you calling from?"

 _"Yours, actually,"_ Naminé admitted.  _"You know you took the wrong one, right?"_

Kairi sighed. "Only because Riku came after me when I didn't pick up," she admitted.

Naminé, who she had told about her voyage in advance, nodded quietly.  _"Actually, I was talking with him about that earlier,"_ she admitted.  _"He mentioned wanting to tell the King and Ansem the Wise about it - make sure they knew you were travelling. I wasn't sure you'd want to-"_

"No, no," Kairi assured her. "It's alright. I'm not trying to hide the fact that I'm on a journey. I just... didn't want anyone trying to stop me."

 _"I see,"_ Naminé mused. _"I'll pass it on."_

"Thanks."

Naminé spoke again before Kairi could hang up.  _"And, Kairi?"_

Kairi moved her thumb away. "Yeah?"

_"...Don't do anything reckless, okay?"_

"Don't worry," Kairi insisted. "I already promised Riku I wouldn't-"

 _"No, I'm not talking about that,"_ Naminé interrupted.  _"You said you wanted to travel to the worlds that Sora has seen. And in some of those worlds... you might encounter some things. Possibilities. Temptations. Offers. But if you try and take them... it won't end well. For anyone."_

A weak smile rose on Kairi's face. "Is that your magic talking?" she asked. "Did you find a way to read memories in the making?"

Naminé shook her head.  _"It's not your memories,"_ she insisted.  _"It's mine. Just... promise **me** that you won't do anything you'll regret."_

"I promise."

Kairi waited until Naminé hung up, and pocketed the Gummiphone with a chuckle.  _Talk about your cryptic warnings,_ she observed.  _I mean, I guess she had enough dealings with the old Organization. 'Speak of the devil, and he shall appear', right? Maybe she didn't want to risk sending me straight at one of those threats._ Her roast fish was raised to her mouth, and she took another bite as her gaze fell.  _But Sora's... too pure. He **knows** when someone's not worth trusting. Where would he even listen long enough to hear an offer like that?_

She was finishing off her fish when a light loomed before her; a small smile rose on Kairi's face, and she raised her gaze to the world she was approaching.

* * *

Once again did her vessel possess an incredible conspicuousness - quite possibly  _more_ conspicuous than it had been in Wonderland, even. Kairi's raft was currently sitting on a  _mountainside_ \- that of a rather impressive mountain, at that. Above her, the clouds swirled, obscuring the mountaintop; just below her was a courtyard for what seemed to be a gladitorial arena, with a pair of massive bronze statues holding their swords crossed above the entrance, and she could make out the opposite wall of a battlefield, from which the sounds of a clash could be heard.

"Oh," Kairi sighed, "Sora must have loved this place."

The coliseum's location on the mountain meant that her mooring point gave her easy access to walk along the walls; briefly she considered spying on the ongoing fight, but she ultimately decided against it and hopped down in the courtyard. Her approach to the doorway found the doors being opened for her as someone stepped out - a rose-haired girl, dressed all in black, who seemed surprised to see her.

"Lookie here," the figure mused. "What brings a girl like you to a place like this?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Kairi countered. The girl coming out didn't exactly look like a warrior goddess - a good few years younger than Kairi was, her hair in a sidetail and her blue-grey eyes full of mischief - nor were her clothes exactly a soldier's uniform - a black dress adorned with feathers, heeled shoes over thigh-high stockings, a lovely-looking opera glove on her left arm, and a few wiry black spikes that didn't seem to serve any purpose but to look devilish. "But I've learned a lot about judging by appearances."

The rose-haired girl giggled. "Don't ask, don't tell?" she suggested, holding a finger before her lips before pointing it at Kairi.

"Sure," Kairi agreed, "I won't pry."

With a nod, the girl stepped past her, crossing the courtyard; Kairi followed her with her gaze for a moment before stepping inside.

The first room through those doors seemed to be an antechamber for the battles held within; a few trophies were lined up on the walls, with nameplates before them that seemed meant to indicate who had won them. Standing on a small pedestal, tending to what seemed to be a rule listing on a bulletin nearby, was a satyr who looked like he'd grazed too many lawns; reasoning this was a good place to start, Kairi stepped up to him. "Excuse me-"

"Back already, are ya?" The satyr didn't even look Kairi's way as he spoke. "I told ya - you can't expect him to just let you down there. The last thing that guy is gonna do is leave his door wide open." Kairi shook her head with an exasperated smirk as he continued; "If you want in, best thing you can do is try to catch someone on their way out." He seemed to finish, starting to turn around as he concluded, "Easier than tryin' to brute-force the way..."

He turned around and fell quiet when he saw Kairi, who raised an eyebrow at him.

"Oh. You're not her."

"No, I'm not," Kairi admitted.

She took a few steps back to give the satyr room to hop down from his pedestal. "Who are you, then?" he inquired. "A wannabe gladiator lookin' to enter the Games?"

Kairi shook her head. "I'm looking for someone," she explained.

"You and every other girl who comes in here," the satyr mused.

"Well, I'm looking for people who have  _seen_ someone," the islander corrected herself. "My name's Kairi."

"Phil." The satyr set his hands on his hips. "Now, whaddaya mean 'people who have seen someone'?" he asked. "You're lookin' for leads?"

With a sigh, Kairi shook her head. "Not exactly. It's kind of complicated and... doesn't totally make sense, to be honest." She took a deep breath. "Has... Sora been here?"

Phil seemed surprised. "You know Sora?" he asked. "Well, yeah, he's definitely been here! I mean, didn't you see the leaderboards outside? Him and his sidekicks are the ones who got these trophies lined up!"

"Donald and Goofy are not sidekicks," Kairi giggled. "It was Sora who had trouble getting used to it all."

"Coulda fooled me," Phil argued. "Sora was the one doing all the heavy lifting during those tournaments!"

"That's because fighting is Sora's thing," Kairi countered. "What did you throw at him that actually gave him any trouble?"

A voice from through the entryway answered her question before Phil had the chance. "That would be me." Kairi turned as an armoured and heavily-muscled figure stepped out with a smile. "But only because he asked to fight me one-on-one."

Kairi giggled. "That, I can believe," she admitted.

"Name's Hercules," the bodybuilder mused, offering his hand. "Call me Herc."

"Kairi." She accepted Herc's hand and found his grip less-than-tight, as though he'd had a few experiences with shaking someone's hand too hard. "So, has Sora only been here for the fights, or has he done more than that?"

"Oh, he knows better than to be a stranger," Phil confirmed. "Round one, asks to sign up for the Games while Herc's away, gets a no, then gets his hands on a pass. The Underworld's guard dog crashes the finals, and him and his friends go in and shut the thing down. Show up for a few tournaments while by while, and when the Lord of the Dead himself tries to play dirty, they take down everything he can throw at them!"

Hercules crossed his arms. "Next time we saw them, Hades was trying to give me trouble in here. They went down to the Underworld to give him a lecture. When  _his_ Coliseum opened up, he roped us into a tournament, and Sora was the one who helped stop things from going south. A few swings later, Hades is in the drink."

Kairi was amazed at what she was hearing. "Wow," she mused. "He doesn't do things by halves, does he?"

Phil laughed. "That's not even where they called it quits," he admitted. "They came by again pretty recently, he was looking for help with something. Talk about your poor timing, Hades is in the middle of a Titan rampage. Sora and his pals are running around town to stop collateral, then they join Herc up the mountain and shut the Titans down  _themselves_." The satyr shook his head. "Let me tell ya, I'd love to see that crew in the arena again."

His comment had Kairi's smile falling. "You... wouldn't be the only ones," she admitted.

"Hey, speakin' of the Underworld," Phil added, turning to Herc, "this other girl came in earlier while you were in the ring. Said she was lookin' for a place of a 'darker disposition'. When I told her about Hades, she asked for a lead. Pink hair, short outfit."

"Wait, who?" Kairi glanced out the door. "I ran into her on my way in."

Herc glanced between them. "Did she say why she was looking for him?"

Phil shook his head. "No, I don't think so. But she didn't look like she wanted to give him pleasantries."

Kairi made to interject. "What did you tell her?"

"There's an old cave not far from the Coliseum that Hades tends to stroll in and out of," Phil admitted. "Out the courtyard and turn left."

 _That's sounds close to where I left the raft,_ Kairi realized. "Um, I'm gonna go after her," she insisted. "I don't think the Underworld is anywhere someone should be travelling on their own."

She had started towards the doors when Herc spoke up. "Kairi, wait. Take this with you." She turned to find Hercules tossing her a small golden shape; she caught it and found it to be a medallion of some sort, emblazoned with a thundercloud-and-bolt emblem. "If you're friends with Sora, Hades won't be happy to see you."

"What is this?" Kairi asked.

"Just a little light in the darkness," Herc assured her.

A small smile rose on Kairi's face at that. "Thanks."

* * *

The cave that Phil had mentioned was indeed not far from Kairi's raft; she reckoned that anyone who happened to glance the right way would notice her 'vessel' sitting there on the middle of the mountainside. Stepping into the cave, drawing her Keyblade, and throwing a Pearl forward revealed a pair of weighty-looking double doors a few steps inside, which led to a staircase going down.

"Door to the Underworld," Kairi mused. "Guess Hades is out of the house."

Walking down the stairway made the Organization's castle feel short; it seemed for a moment that the stairs descended into eternity. Eventually, however, things changed around her; the stone on the walls began to feel less 'earth' and more 'death', an unpleasant fog drifted around her feet, and the sounds of a fight rang in her ears. When at last the staircase levelled off, she found herself standing on what seemed to be a shore for the deceased - where it appeared that a battle had broken out on the beach.

The rose-haired girl in black that Kairi had met on her way into the Coliseum was indeed there - and she was fighting off a good number of Heartless. In her right hand was what appeared to be a switchblade knife, with a disc on the hilt that seemed to have the blade revolve around it; Soldiers that drew too near were cut down with swipes of the blade, and if the nearest enemy was out of reach of her weapon, bursts of grey magic were flung from her left hand. As the squadron was finished off, a Large Body appeared nearby, and the girl turned towards it as it tried to swipe at her.

She ducked under its fist and swept around it with all the fluidity of falling rain - and before it could turn back to face her, she raised her knife and swung. Two spinning blows, followed by a whirling kick that left the Heartless stumbling and another blade swing; she brought the weapon back the way it came, then kicked away and hurled the knife hard enough to impale it in the Heartless' back. She immediately turned away and leapt into a backflip, landing a falling kick, before spinning again to pull the blade out and deal another turning kick in one motion; then she twisted into a rising spin, striking the Heartless once, twice, and thrice to finish it off and leave its heart drifting.

The girl landed and took a ready stance - her blade behind her, angled towards the ground, and her gloved arm before her - and her gaze danced around the shore before it settled on Kairi. "Oh?"

"Knew it would be bad to judge you by appearances," Kairi mused, stepping forward.

"And yet  _I_ knew the Coliseum wasn't the style for a girl like you," the rose-haired girl argued. She raised the knife at her side with a flourish, her index finger slipping into the ring at the hilt as she twirled it, and the blade slipped into the handle before she grabbed it properly again and slipped it into her pocket. "So, what brings you down to hell?"

Kairi shook her head. "Actually, Phil told me about  _you_ coming down here. I figured the Underworld wasn't exactly a one-woman destination and figured you wouldn't mind the company."  _And I wanted to make sure you didn't trash my raft,_ she added internally, though she wasn't about to say that out loud.

The rose-haired girl laughed at that. "Oh, wanting to play white knight for the little girl lost in the Underworld?" she asked. "How brave. Thanks, but I think I can handle myself. If you're just here for the moral support, I'll have to pass."

"Well..." Kairi glanced over the deathly waters. "...I'd be lying if I said I wasn't interested in seeing this place for myself."

"Ah, I had a feeling." The knife-fighter stepped towards her. "You wanna tag along, go right ahead. Got a name?"

The islander offered her hand. "I'm Kairi."

"Claire."

* * *

The Underworld was a right maze; the shore where Claire had been fighting had two distinct paths from it, and although she seemed to be looking for something specific, the rose-haired girl wasn't a hundred percent sure she was going the right way. The Heartless variety down here was almost impressive, but Claire was more than capable of fighting through them, and with Kairi watching her back the two were basically cutting a swath through the Underworld.

Ease of combat did not necessarily equate to ease of stamina, however; the two travelers called a brief break in a small alcove. The rose-haired girl seemed kind of impatient, flicking her knife open and shut with spinning flourishes as though wishing it would speed up her recovery, and after a moment Kairi spoke up. "So, Claire... what's your angle?"

Claire's gaze shot up; her grip on the knife faltered, and the weapon clattered to the ground.

"Um, sorry?"

"No, no," Claire insisted, giving an awkward giggle. "Just déjà vu." She shook her head, kneeling down to pick up the knife. "I don't have a problem with you asking."

She flicked it shut with no flourish, and set it into her pocket; then, after a moment, she answered.

"I ended up in... a pretty nasty situation. Only thing for it was to bunker down and ride out the storm. I hoped that if I did, I'd be able to help clean up in the aftermath. But then... something happened." She glanced down at her gloved hand. "Someone I care about has ended up down here. And I need to get her back."

Kairi said nothing, her gaze falling as she contemplaed.  _This place... this is the land of the dead. What's Claire trying to do by finding someone down here? Does she think... is she trying to bring her back?_  She drew her knees up to her chin.  _But... maybe that's not so out there. That cave that leads here... if the door's open, anyone could just walk out. If it works for Claire, then... maybe..._

She caught her train of thought and shook her head with an angry grunt.  _So this is what Naminé was talking about when she said 'possibilities'. Don't go there, Kairi. Sora's gone._ She closed her eyes.  _Sora's gone, and he knew that when he came for you. Don't **go** there._

"Kairi? You okay?"

The concerned prompting from Claire drew the islander to raise her gaze. "Yeah?"

"You're..."

She didn't need to be told; Kairi could feel the moisture running down her cheeks. "I'm fine," she insisted. "Just... bad memories." She got to her feet. "Come on, I've rested enough."

Claire looked like she wasn't convinced - but she didn't make any objection that  **she** still needed rest, and drew her knife for the continued trek all the same.

* * *

Eventually, they maze gave way to a path over a murky lake of green fog; that path led to the side of what looked unpleasantly like a giant, stylized _skull_ , whose eye sockets appeared to be paneless windows. Sure enough, it terminated on a door, behind which was a jagged staircase, at the end of which was what appeared to be a throne room.

And seated on the throne was a figure in a long, dark robe, with pale blue skin, and blue flames where his hair should have been.

Hades looked to recognize the combatants as they stepped inside; he was slouched on his throne until they were in view, and then he abruptly shot upright. "Wait... It's you?"

Claire smirked. "You recognize me, do you?" She drew out her knife. "That makes things eas-"

"Not you," Hades protested. Claire stopped abruptly as the Lord of the Dead got to his feet, stepping around what seemed to be a large table in the middle of the room; his gaze was locked on Kairi. "You."

"Me?"

Hades aimed a finger at her, sweeping it down towards her dark-resistant outfit from the three good fairies. "The clothes are iffy..." Then, sweeping it up towards her face; "And your hair's poofier than it used to be... But you're the girl that the silver-headed kid was looking for."

Kairi knew far too many people for her tastes that fit the description of 'silver-headed', most of which were permanently on her bad side... but only one had ever fit the description of 'kid' in the time she knew him. And if someone this dark knew Riku... "You were in Maleficent's circle."

" _What_ are _you_ doing here?" Hades demanded.

" **I'm** the one who's here for you," Claire insisted, drawing Hades' attention to her. "She's just here for the trip." She flicked her knife open. " _Do_ you recognize me?"

That got Hades looking contemplative; he set one hand over his chin as he gave Claire a good once-over. "...Another iffy wardrobe," he mused, "but there's definitely a resemblance."

Claire aimed her knife forward. "There's a good reason for that."

A smirk decorated Hades' face in short order. "Oh, don't tell me... You want to try and get her back?"

"Get  _who_ back?" Kairi demanded.

"There's been an interesting little  _invasion_ down here recently," Hades mused. "A new kind of darkness that I'd  _love_ to get a good look at. But it's clinging to a few people who aren't exactly agreeing enough to discuss collaboration..." He turned to Claire as he added, "and one of them looks a lot like you."

"Are you going to try stop me from getting to her?" Claire demanded.

Hades snickered. "You think you can convince me otherwise?"

"I'm not asking," Claire snapped - and a strange  _light_  began to dance around her. "Let my sister go."

For a brief moment, Kairi could have sworn Claire looked different - covered in silver armour like a fairy tale, with a shield resting on her left arm and a much longer blade in her right.

With a derisive huff, Hades stepped back. "Alright." His hair - and skin - turned bright red. "You wanna try your luck?"

"Claire," Kairi warned, "I don't think this is a good-"

Her warnings fell on deaf ears; Claire charged Hades with her knife at the ready, swinging her gloved hand forward to throw a shot of grey magic ahead of her. The Lord of the Dead brought his hand forward and closed it on the cast, causing pale smoke to burst out the sides of his fist; Claire brought her knife down on his hand to no effect, and then twisted into a spinning blow that didn't even cut his robe. A snap of Hades' fingers caused him to be covered in a much darker smoke, vanishing from before Claire and reappearing across the room; she turned with a lash of her hand that rained down Thunder on Hades, but the god looked more annoyed than anything as she charged him again.

Flames gathered in Hades' hand, and as soon as Claire was in sword range, he threw them forward.

The blaze connected at point-blank range, hitting with enough kick to throw Claire straight into the table in the middle of the room. She hit the ground with a weak groan as Hades stepped forward. "Funny thing about being the God of the Underworld," he mused. "It's  _my_ Underworld. You're in my domain now, and you'll play by my rules." Flames ignited in each of his palms. "And Rule #1: Heroes. Always. Lose."

He made to bring down his blazing hands on Claire.

He found them interrupted on a Keyblade.

Kairi put Destiny's Embrace in the way of Hades' strike and almost immediately regretted it - mostly because she hadn't exactly thought her block posture through, putting all the weight of his blow on her elbows. Even so, training with Lea had given her enough strength to hold back the blow, and she quickly remarked, "Sora... would beg... to differ."

"What?" Hades' gaze narrowed. "Oh, that's right... If you were friends with the silver-head, you'd be friends with the Keyblader." His gaze traced Kairi's weapon. "Speaking of... where'd you get something like this?"

"Seems like these days everybody's got one of these," Kairi admitted. "Are we done here?"

She tried to fight Hades' hands back, only to find a sudden lack of resistance; the Lord of the Dead vanished in a surge of smoke, reappearing at the throne room entrance. "Yeah," he admitted, "I've had enough."

A snap of his fingers caused smoke to appear much closer; Kairi glanced back to find the table that Claire had been knocked against vanishing... revealing a  _swirling rift_ below. The crackle of flames drew her attention back to Hades, who was gathering a blaze in his grip again; he hurled it at Kairi, and the islander's attempt at defending only guaranteed the blast had her  _skidding_  back rather than  _flying_.

She and Claire tumbled into the pit that had been opened up; and another surge of black smoke replaced the barrier on their entryway.

* * *

When Kairi's eyes opened again, she found herself lying in a very dark area. Dark enough, in fact, that she couldn't much make out  _anything_ but her own hand lying before her. With a groan, she pushed herself to her feet, Destiny's Embrace appearing in her hand - and in that flash of light, she found a familiar rose-haired leaning against what appeared to be a cave wall, her knife in hand.

"Claire!" Kairi's exclamation earned her Claire's attention in the instant before the glow of her Keyblade's summoning faded. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Claire assured her. "More angry than anything." There was the sound of her knife being sheathed as she asked, "Can you give us any proper light, or is that just brief flashes?"

"Um, yeah," Kairi admitted, "if I try, I can probably..." A Pearl appeared on the tip of her Keyblade, and she willed it to stay there as Claire got to her feet. "Any idea what this place is?"

With a hum, Claire glanced around; their current location seemed to be a long hallway with a lot of offshooting caves. "This place looks like a prison. But there's something strange around here." A smirk rose on her face. "I wonder if he's keeping the chaos down here. Wouldn't that be a hoot, him trying to lock us up and putting me right where I wanted to be."

Kairi remembered what she had said earlier, about looking for someone down here; her concentration faltered, and the Pearl vanished from her weapon and faded.

A sigh loomed out of the darkness. "Guess keeping lit down here was a bit much to-"

"Claire." Kairi's interruption put her ally to silence. "What exactly are you trying to do?"

"What's that about?" Claire asked. "I told you-"

"You said you're looking for someone," Kairi mused. "You said you're trying to bring her back. Is your sister...?" She raised her gaze to the rose-haired girl. "Are you trying to bring her back to life?"

A heavy sigh emerged from Claire. "Not exactly." Footsteps sounded, and then the brush of stone as she leaned against the wall again. "It's a complicated story that I don't know if it'll make sense."

Kairi shook her head. "Try me."

"...My sister's heart was taken away," Claire explained. "I came after it, and I found this place. The strange darkness that Hades mentioned - I'm pretty sure it's the chaos that took my sister. And that means it doesn't belong here, in this place where gods wear togas."

"It's her heart?" Kairi asked.

"Yeah," Claire confirmed. "Well, I mean, not her physical-"

"I know," Kairi interrupted.

Disbelief was clear on Claire's voice when she spoke. "...You do?"

Another Pearl appeared on the tip of Kairi's Keyblade as she raised it. "I've had a lot of dealings with hearts over the past year-and-so," she explained. "You're just here to get your sister  _her_ heart back?"

Claire hummed. "Well, kind of. Her heart's here, but her body's... tainted. And lost." Her gaze fell. "Actually... I've been so concerned about finding her, I didn't really think about how I was gonna get her out."

"Oh, that part's easy," Kairi assured her.

"Huh?"

Kairi reached forward with her free hand and tapped Claire's chest. "You can keep her heart inside you," she assured. "And once she has a body she can safely take again, then you can return her to it."

A smile rose on Claire's face. "It can't be that easy, can it?"

"I know it can," Kairi assured her. "I have been there, done that, and got the frickin' t-shirt."

* * *

The prison-esque area was a maze - and, distressingly, free of prisoners. But in time, they found themselves approaching a wide-open area... which seemed to be draped in a strange aura. Kairi found herself stumbling as they approached it, her Keyblade and the Pearl upon it vanishing - only to find the aura providing enough ambient light to allow them vision. "This must be it," she murmured. "This is the darkness Hades mentioned."

"Yeah, I had a feeling," Claire admitted. "This chaos doesn't belong down here." She stepped forward, her gaze skyward as she called out into the darkness. "Serah! Are you here?"

_Who are you?_

A voice echoed around the cavern - a female voice, a _young_ voice, a voice that seemed oddly detached from its emotions. Claire's expression changed, implying she recognized it. "Wait..."

_You do not belong in this realm. What are you?_

"I'm something that was forgotten," Claire insisted. "Cast out under the mistaken belief that I was something that would only slow her down." She held out her hand. "I was gone when you claimed who was to blame for this doom."

_...The warrior?_

Claire nodded. "What are you doing here, in this place? You don't belong in this realm any more than I do."

_A chaos more volatile than even that which drowned the timeless shores. With the gate torn open, we were cast out into an ocean amidst the storm. We cannot go back to the realm we left behind._

Kairi's gaze narrowed. "Cast out into an ocean? Does she mean...?"

" **I** can go back to the realm we left behind," Claire insisted. "Why can't you come with me?"

_You would subject yourself to the tides of chaos for so long as it takes to return?_

"I would," Claire confirmed.

Those words had Kairi panicking; she stepped forward, grabbing Claire's arm. "Wait, what are you-?"

Claire pulled her arm free. "They doesn't belong here. And I can't leave them where people like Hades can just exploit them." She turned back to the open area. "Where's Serah? Is she with you?"

_Yes. If you will promise us safe passage to the realm we left behind, we will bestow her upon you, to be returned when the bell tolls._

"Are you kidding me!? What are you doing down here!?"

The voice from across the room snapped Claire and Kairi's gazes downward. The Lord of the Dead had come down after them - and he looked outraged, his hair blazing red again. Kairi stepped forward, Destiny's Embrace reappearing in her grip. "You sent us down here!"

"I'm not  _talking_ about you!" Hades protested. "I'm talking about this!" He aimed a hand at the aura that surrounded them,

Claire snickered. "You mean you didn't cast us down here expecting the chaos to eat us alive?"

Hades groaned. "Last I saw this darkness, it was cramping the Underdrome! This is the Underworld's deepest dungeon! I was trying to collaborate, not dominate!"

Kairi aimed her Keyblade at him. "I thought Maleficent taught you your lesson about collaborating with outsiders," she mused.

"Now!"

At Claire's prompting, the aura began to  **surge** \- tendrils of that strange darkness began to swarm towards her. Kairi immediately charged towards Hades, hurling a sphere of Pearl at him while she was crossing the distance. Hades retaliated by throwing a ball of flames at it; the two collided and burst out, and Kairi charged through the smoke with her Keyblade raised. A hard blow to the midsection didn't even make him  _flinch_ , but Hades nonetheless retaliated with a swipe of blazing hands that the islander barely managed to weave away from; another Pearl struck the back of his head kept his attention on her, and he retaliated with a round swipe in the hopes she was in melee range before raising his hands and sending a _stream_  of flames her way.

Kairi hurled a shower of Blizzard into the inferno... and quickly found it doing next to nothing.

"You know, you're not so bad at this whole Keyblading thing," Hades admitted. "But I think you're a little out of your depth. You're one of those lights we were after, aren't you?"

A smile rose on Kairi's face. "I guess you've got a point," she conceded. "Maybe I'm trying too hard. The world's made of light  **and** darkness. You can't have one without the other - 'cause darkness is half of everything."

Her words drew Hades' gaze skyward; the aura of strange darkness had vanished, and with a yelp he turned around.

The darkness - the  _chaos_ \- had converged on Claire, who was now standing in the middle of a checkered dome. For a brief moment, Kairi could have sworn that it wasn't  _Claire_ the darkness was surrounding; within the dome was a rose-haired woman covered in silver armour, a shield on one arm, and a girl much like Claire was lying limply in her arms. But then the dome closed in, taking the image with it, and Claire was standing there, her arms spaced as though she had been holding someone across them... and a glowing heart was suspended before her.

The heart entered Claire, and she closed her arms over her chest.

And then she opened her eyes, and that armoured warrior seemed to burn in her soul. The glove on her left arm vanished, and the shield that the warrior had been carrying appeared on her arm; she swung her right hand to her side, and with a flurry of feathers that long blade was in her grip before she pointed it at Hades.

"I think I've overstayed my welcome."

Hades glared right back at her; then he glanced at Kairi, with her Keyblade at the ready, and seemed to think better of resuming the fight. A weak chuckle emerged from the Lord of the Dead, escalating into full-blow sarcastic laughter. "Alright! Alright, fine. You don't want to stick around? Fine. I'm not in the mood to entertain rude guests."

Dark smoke plumed around him, though his voice lingered long enough to add; "Have fun finding your way out."

Kairi waited until the last of the smoke vanished before lowering her Keyblade, dashing towards Claire. "Are you alright?" she asked.

"I'm more than alright," Claire assured her. "I've got Serah back." She offered the islander a smile. "Thanks, Kairi."

"It's no problem," Kairi insisted. "But... I think he's got a point. How are we gonna get out of here?"

Claire glanced at her shield hand. "I think I've got an idea..."

"Huh?"

Before Kairi could make to ask, Claire reached forward, taking Kairi's hand in hers; a red glow emerged in her eyes, and when she spoke, she could have sworn the voice of the strange darkness spoke with her.

" _Powers of chaos, bend to my will..._ "

A surge of power rippled out around Kairi, blotting out everything but her and Claire; then it faded, and she was surprised to find herself standing on the deathly shore from which she had arrived. With a yelp, Kairi pulled her hand of out Claire's grip, glancing around. "Woah... that was...?"

"Sorry, sorry," Claire insisted. "Maybe a little warning next time?"

"Um, no," Kairi assured her, realizing that wasn't the same sort of dark corridor that she was familiar with. "It's alright." She glanced at the stairs leading out of the Underworld. "Let's get out of here - before Hades decides to get in our way any more."

* * *

The doors were thankfully still open when they reached the exit; Kairi and Claire both took deep breaths of the mountain air as they emerged, glad to be back out where the sun was shining. "That is the last time I go anywhere near that guy on purpose," Kairi proclaimed.

"I don't blame you," Claire admitted. "So... is this where we go our separate ways?"

Kairi nodded. "Yeah... I should probably get going."

Her gaze ended up going to her ride; Claire followed her eyes and was dumbfounded by what she saw. "Is that a raft?"

"Kind of," Kairi mused. "I actually wanted to talk to you about that." Turning to face Claire again; "You're... not from this world, are you?"

Claire was caught by surprise. "What gave it away?"

"When you were talking to the darkness," Kairi explained. "It said it was 'cast out into an ocean'. The ocean between worlds." She shook her head. "And that part about you being... forgotten. Are you...?"

"You saw me," Claire observed. "The armour? That was me - the real me." She glanced down at herself. "This me... This is just the part of me that I thought was holding me back. I buried this under so many layers of memories, I almost forgot about it. But when Serah was brought here... This part of me was torn away." Her gaze went back up to Kairi. "And the real me almost doesn't exist anymore."

A quiet sigh of relief emerged from Kairi. "Yet," she corrected. "If you can get back there, you'll exist again. And so will Serah, in time." She turned away, making to climb towards the raft.

"Kairi," Claire interrupted, "I wanted to talk to you, too." The islander's footsteps paused as Claire approached her. "Those 'bad memories' you mentioned... And the way you reacted when you thought I was trying to bring Serah back to life... Have you... lost someone?"

"...Yeah," Kairi admitted. "I have. That's why I wanted to come with you - for more than just to help you. I wondered if maybe he had ended up down there. But I was warned about this." Tears were starting to rise in her eyes. "If I tried to bring him back... it would turn out worse, for everyone."

Claire's hand touched her arm. "Then promise me you'll never stop crying for him."

"What?"

"That's why this part of me was torn away," Claire insisted. "I lost someone, and I thought that letting myself cry for them was just going to hold me back. I stopped getting sad, and started getting  _angry_ \- and that turned out pretty bad itself. I've only been able to cry again recently." She closed her hands before her. "You miss him. And that's a good thing. There are worse ways to remember someone than shedding tears."

A small smile rose on Kairi's face, despite the flowing tears. "Thank you, Claire."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel like they left FF characters out of Olympus for KHIII just to highlight Hades' "using pawns kicked his ass" problem that got brought up when he resorted to the Titans and the alignment. Draco was so pissy because he was expecting to see Lightning or Noctis or Ace.


	4. Piracy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Not gonna blame anyone if I get a lack of readers", I said. This thing's already got a third of the hits OtherSelf Online has, and this one only makes one-tenth as many chapters! #kingdomheartsislight

"...How am I gonna cook this thing?"

Back when Sora, Riku, and Kairi had first built a raft - thinking that they could reach other worlds by sailing off the Destiny Islands, full stop - they had been under the assumption that worldly travel would not be totally different from island travel, that they would be able to stop at smaller spits of land to make camp or stretch their legs, and they had packed their supplies accordingly. As part of her deliberate nostalgia in recreating the raft, Kairi had also packed her bag the way they had packed it for that foolish voyage, thinking that food supplies didn't exactly change much depending on the specifics of the voyage.

She had thus failed to account for the fact that one item in the food supplies was a seagull egg - and that she had nothing on which to cook it.

As she sat there, contemplating with egg in hand, a tune from her pocket told her that someone was calling. She still wasn't quite used to the melody echoing out in the quiet Ocean Between, and so turned towards it with a slight jolt; that caused the (rather weighty) egg's balance to shift, and when Kairi tried to catch it she found herself unintentionally batting the egg  _off the edge of her raft_ , whereupon it vanished into the sea of stardust on which her raft floated.

With a sigh, Kairi sat back against the mast, drawing out Sora's Gummiphone. "I'm not gonna think about what world that's gonna land in," she muttered.

A tap of the screen brought up faces she wasn't expecting - those of King Mickey, Donald, and Goofy.  _"Hiya, Kairi!"_

"Your Majesty," Kairi greeted. "What brings you calling?"

 _"Riku told us you were goin' on a journey,"_ Goofy admitted.  _"We thought we'd check in on ya and see how far you'd gotten so far!"_

Kairi giggled lightly. "Not far at all," she proclaimed. "I've only been to two worlds since I left the islands."

 _"And you haven't been suspicious in any of those worlds, have you?"_ Donald asked.

"Suspicious?" Kairi asked. "No, I don't think so..." She thought back.  _Well, the Queen of Hearts was suspicious, but only because she's a horrible person._ "What kind of 'suspicious' are you talking about?"

Donald groaned.

 _"Sora took a while to get used to the whole 'blending in' thing we hafta do in some worlds,"_ Goofy admitted.  _"Last few trips, he was still jumpin' after he got a good look at himself."_

 _"Keyblade wielders have gotta take care to preserve the world order,"_ the King explained.  _"If you find yourself in a world where ya stick out, ya gotta do something."_

Kairi started to feel like maybe she should have taken a more... proper vessel for her voyage. "How did you guys handle that?" she asked.

 _"Well, the Gummi Ship was set up to change us when we got there,"_ Goofy observed. " _Donald did it with his magic."_

The King looked curious for a moment.  _"I could probably get Chip and Dale to add something kinda similar to your Gummiphone,"_ he told Kairi.

"Could you?" Kairi asked. "That would be great! How many worlds did you guys go through that needed something like that?"

 _"Not enough for Sora to remember it when it did happen,"_ Donald mused.  _"One of 'em wasn't even necessary, he just really wanted a change of clothes."_

 _"Right,"_ the King mused,  _"I'll get Chip and Dale started on the update. Try to be careful in the meantime!"_

"Will do."

Kairi hung up, pocketing Sora's Gummiphone as she thought about Donald's last addendum. "...If Sora never remembered when he **needed** a change of clothes, what kind of world would he  **want** a change of clothes?"

A light rose up before her as she contemplated that question, and she raised her gaze to the world she was approaching.

* * *

The motion of the raft on water did not cease as the light surrounded her; when she could see again, she was sailing on a proper sea. These were very different waters than those surrounding the Destiny Islands, and Kairi found herself drifting up towards an impressively massive city at the oceanside.

"Okay," she murmured. "This is amazing."

The port was filled with ships, but she eventually found a dock low enough for her raft; she tied it up at the waterside, cast a subtle enchantment to make sure no one could make off with it, and wandered into the town. The city was busy, with horse-drawn carriages running every which way, and a noticeably brighter disposition than any comparably-sized communities Kairi had seen; yet at once point, as she was walking along one of those streets, she came across a rather curious sight.

A man leapt from an upper-story window, clinging to a decorative banner strung across the city and positioning himself to be invisible from the window he'd come from; he was dressed in a black jacket, had a sword hung at his hip, and atop his head was a black tricorne.

_A pirate...?_

The smile was still rising on Kairi's face when she saw an officious-looking figure appear at the window he'd come out of. Quickly realizing that the pirate wouldn't be invisible to a sufficiently-trained eye, she quickly made to distract him; a call of "Excuse me, sir!" got the man's attention. "Are you looking for someone?" she asked. "I saw a rather suspicious-looking man take off down this street." She pointed opposite the side of the banner the man was clinging to.

"Thank you, lass!" the man insisted, and he closed the window as he withdrew into the building.

Kairi's gaze went up to the pirate, who's expression told her of the immediate realization that she was deliberately helping him. She quickly pointed to the building on the other side of the street, which had enough windowsills and other ledges to facilitate a descent, and the pirate nodded, starting to shimmy his way across the banner.

Officious-looking men in uniforms and muskets dashed out of the building, taking off in the direction Kairi had indicated; the pirate waited until they were clear before clambering down the building. Kairi beckoned him around the nearest corner, where an archway amidst the throng of buildings seemed to serve no other purpose than to provide cover anyone who might get caught outside when it rained.

When she turned back to the pirate, she found a cutlass held towards her.

Destiny's Embrace appeared in her hand, and she moved his blade away. "That won't be necessary," she insisted. "I didn't throw off your pursuers just to turn you in myself."

The pirate opened his mouth to retort... but his gaze quickly drifted towards her weapon. "Say, haven't I seen that lovely blade before?"

"Sora had one," Kairi admitted. "Did you know Sora?"

"I do indeed," the pirate confirmed. Kairi made to move her Keyblade aside, and the pirate promptly returned his cutlass to its scabbard. "Captain Jack Sparrow," he introduced.

The islander dismissed her Keyblade. "I'm Kairi."

"So," Jack inquired, "what brings you to these waters? If you mean to sail under the same captain as your friend, I'm loathe to admit you've chosen a terrible time. I'm in dire need of a ship."

"What?" Kairi was confused by the incongruity. "How can you be a captain without a ship?"

"Deals with sea demons, truth be told," Jack admitted. "In any case, I believe I've found a means by which to procure one, and I would deeply appreciate your help on a certain front in the meantime."

Kairi crossed her arms. "What sort of help?"

Jack reached into his pocket, drawing out what appeared to be a compass. "You'll find a prison in a general  _that_ way direction," he explained, pointing diagonal to the docks Kairi had moored at. "There a man being held there, Joshamee Gibbs, who I believe has something I'd very much like to see that  _he_ is the only one who has it. Savvy?"

"S-Savvy," Kairi confirmed.

With a nod, Jack turned, taking off down the other street; a small smile rose on Kairi's face as she made off in the direction he had highlighted. After a moment's though, she ducked into another 'tunnel', drawing out Sora's Gummiphone and opening up the photo album.

Sure enough, she found a picture of Sora, Donald, and Goofy on a beach - each in piratical apparel, and Sora's not all too different from Jack's.

"Now I get it..."

* * *

Immediately did Kairi realize a problem with Jack's instruction; the 'general  _that_  way direction' that she had been given was fourty-five degrees to the streets' layout. Kairi's only recourse was to start at the docks and search; the sun was on its way down when she found herself at the walls of a very notable-looking prison... with what seemed to be a hangman's setup outside, near which a few men were speaking.

"Yeah, okay..." Only now did Kairi stop to consider exactly what Jack had said. "Find a specific person in the prison who you  _think_ has something that you want him to keep a tight hold on?" She glanced back towards the docks. "I feel like he was just fast-talking me while he went to find a ship."

A heavy double-door was thrown open, and Kairi turned to find someone being dragged out from inside - a portly-looking man with greying hair circling his jaw. "You're mistaken!" he protested. "It's a  _life_ sentence! Not death! Life!"

One of those men Kairi had seen discussing now stepped into the light - revealing rather officious-looking garb, a scraggly-looking beard, and a peg leg that he seemed to be rather unused to, given the crutch in his other hand. "Master Gibbs."

 _Gibbs?_ Kairi realized this was the man Jack was worried about.  _Wow. Me of little faith._

"Barbossa." Gibbs seemed none-too-pleased to see this man.

"Thank you, gentlemen," the official, Barbossa, said to Gibbs' escorts. They took off back into the prison, and Barbossa grabbed a bundle from nearby. "I trust you can tie a noose."

He hurled the bundle - a thick sort of rope - at Gibbs, who only glared in return. "That's a hard thing," he reprimanded, "forcin' a man to twist his own hanging rope."

Barbossa was thrown the rope back, shaking his head in dismay. "You must lie in yer bed the way you made it." Handing the rope to his allies; "Where be Jack Sparrow?"

A grin rose on Gibbs' face. "He escaped." It wasn't a proclamation - it was a realization. Gibbs must have last seen Jack be carted off.

"I'm on a tight schedule, Gibbs," Barbossa reprimanded. "The HMS Providence sets sail at first light. If you do not care to watch it hanging here dead, with a mouth full of flies, speak now."

"...Take me with you," Gibbs pleaded. "Any point of the compass-"

Barbossa loomed forward at that. "Take you where, Gibbs? The Fountain? Aye... Is that where Jack be headed?"

 _Fountain?_ Kairi glanced towards the port.  _What kind of Fountain does Jack need a ship for?_

"Have you anything you can offer me, Gibbs?" Barbossa demanded. "Anything at all?" Then, when Gibbs remained quiet; "Upon me naked word, you'll not see the dawn."

He started to march away, and on his third step Gibbs spoke up. "Wait!" Barbossa turned back to face him as he reached under his vest, drawing out a rolled-up shape.

 _...who I believe has something I would very much like to see that_ he _is the only one who has it._

"...Hand it over," Barbossa demanded.

Kairi realized that that item - she reckoned it was a map - was what Jack was worried about; Destiny's Embrace quickly shone into her hand, and she charged forward. Her footsteps drew the men's attention as she drew near; before they could draw their weapons, she knocked one down with a full-bodied tackle, struck the other's sword of his hip before he could draw it, and knocked the crutch out from the one-legged man's grip before quickly positioning herself between him and the chartman.

"Mister Gibbs?" she asked.

"Aye?"

"The name's Kairi. Your captain sent me."

Barbossa's gaze was on Kairi's weapon; when his men started to draw pistols, he quickly commanded, "Hold your fire!" His gaze went up to her. "Sent you from where, exactly?"

Kairi scoffed. "To be totally honest," she admitted, "he fast-talked me in the middle of a chase. He's not gonna be where I left him, and he didn't tell me where he was going." She turned her Keyblade forward. "But he's got information I'm after - so long as I keep his friend safe. Which means-"

Something hit the ground behind her; Kairi glanced back to find Gibbs had unfurled that map and thrown it to the ground. Then he seized a nearby lantern, and before Kairi or Barbossa could try to stop him, he hurled it onto the map, the flames consuming the chart in short order.

"You fool!" Barbossa protested.

Gibbs had a victorious smile on his face that told Kairi this was the preferable option. "I had just enough time to study those infernal circles," he proclaimed. "Every route, every destination, all safe... in here." One finger was raised to his temple.

He held Barbossa's glare for a long moment; then the one-legged man huffed. "Welcome back to His Majesty's navy, Master Gibbs," he spat. "Men, take him to the Providence."

Kairi turned to Gibbs. "You sure that was a good idea?"

"Miss Kairi," Barbossa proclaimed to her back, "I would have a word with you, as well."

The words had Kairi turning around. "About what exactly."

The one-legged man aimed a finger at her Keyblade. "I've seen that weapon before," he proclaimed, "least one of its make. If the last event should have any precedence, it would mean that there are unpleasant creatures about of whom I would not like to run afoul. Will you travel with us?"

His men seemed to take umbrage at that. "What!?"

Kairi's thoughts turned.  _Unpleasant creatures... This guy's seen Sora before. He's seen Sora fight Heartless, even._ Her gaze went to Gibbs.  _I can't leave Jack's man to sail with a crew that can't handle Heartless..._ "Of course," she confirmed to Barbossa.

One man stepped up to Barbossa before he could respond, grabbing her by the arm. "Captain, tell me you don't mean to take a woman on board with us!"

"Excuse me?" Kairi protested.

Barbossa seemed to similarly take umbrage, whirling round to face him. "This woman can handle creatures that no King's man could hold a candle to. Would you leave her behind, and leave the crew to suffer that ill fate?"

"A woman has no place in the King's navy!" the man protested. "If you would bring her on board, the entire crew would mutiny for the claim!"

 _You have got to be kidding me,_ Kairi sighed internally.  _A pirate world that Sora liked enough to blend in when he didn't need to, and it's full of sexist sailors?_

Gibbs spoke up. "If I might make a suggestion," he insisted, "there's a solution that should satisfy your crew, and still allow Miss Kairi to accompany us all the same."

Barbossa turned to him. "Oh?"

Kairi perked up on hearing that. "Do tell."

* * *

"Bloody privateers..."

Gibbs' "solution" was to tie up Kairi's raft behind the HMS Providence and  _tow it along in its wake_  as they set sail. Kairi was in a most unpleasant mood as she sat against the mast, chewing her way through her mushrooms and fish for the duration of the voyage.

 _Well, I suppose there are worse ideas,_ she admitted to herself.  _This world is huge. At least like this, I can take off quickly once I'm done here._ She shook her head.  _This place is barely worth it. I hope Sora only enjoyed this world because the pirates are better-tempered than the officials are._

A movement in the waters behind the Providence drew Kairi's attention; something was bobbing about behind her. As she got to her feet, she realized it wasn't just  **one** something - it was  **many** small somethings, and peering closer revealed those many small somethings looked like giant  _jellyfish_. A closer look still revealed the Heartless' emblem upon their surface, and with a groan, Destiny's Embrace appeared in her grip.

"Nice timing," she mused. "I could use something to take my mind off of this."

The Heartless' ability to keep up with a ship at full sail didn't change the fact that they were all coming from one direction - and that made this fight a lot easier on Kairi than it could have been. The moment one of the jellyfish Heartless came near enough, she was able to strike it away with a swing of her Keyblade; in this fashion did none of the Heartless land so much as a sting before she was alone in the Providence's wake, and with a sigh, she turned back towards the raft with intent to dig out another mushroom.

A second coil of rope slammed onto the surface of her raft, trailing from above; Kairi raised her gaze to find Captain Barbossa descending upon it, and to her surprise he landed upon her raft without much stumble.

"How did you pull that off with a peg leg?" Kairi asked.

"T'weren't expectin' to, in honesty," Barbossa admitted.

Kairi took note of the fact that he had deigned to come to her boat rather than asking her to come to his; combined with the fact that he had been the one who insisted on her accompaniment, she had a feeling he wasn't exactly of the same sort as his crew. "So," Kairi mused, drawing her Keyblade again, "what's your story with a weapon like this?"

"A boy carryin' a blade like that sailed with Jack more than once," Barbossa proclaimed. "And whenever he did, Heartless made to obstruct them."

His use of the term caught Kairi by surprise. "How do you know about Heartless?"

Barbossa huffed. "I conspired with a man who commanded those things once," he admitted, "and it brought me nothing but grief. Jack and I were sailing as adversaries, then, and so the boy help him strike me down." He shook his head. "When next he sailed with Jack, all the pirates on the seas had been brought together in desperation - and he and I were no different."

"...Pirate?" Kairi echoed. "I thought you were a privateer?"

"Aye," Barbossa warned, "and see to it you maintain that mistake around the crew. The King's ship and men are just a means to achieve what I'm after."

A smirk rose on Kairi's face. "With the way they act," she admitted, "I'm not inclined to disagree with you."

"Captain, sir!" The voice from above drew Barbossa's attention back up to the Providence deck; the lieutenant commander seemed to need a word with the captain. Kairi took her seat against the mast of her raft again as Barbossa began to climb his way back up the rope he had cast down here.

* * *

They reached their destination in due time - a cove called Whitecap Bay. Gibbs and Barbossa joined Kairi as she sailed her raft towards the shore, while a few crew members followed suit in longboats. Rain began to fall as they approached the shore, prompting Kairi to raise her hood; a lighthouse on the cove seemed to have recently been destroyed, for it was smoking unpleasantly as they arrived; the shore was strewn with unpleasant ruin, and as Kairi's raft neared the shore it collided with something that had seen sand strewn across it... and cast aside enough to reveal what it was.

A body.

Kairi fought back a terrified shriek at what she realized she was seeing. Scattered across the shore were bodies - human bodies, all of them in various states of dismemberment, as though their attackers had been forced to flee in the midst of their strike. "Oh, χ-blade," she gasped. "Is this...?"

"Mermaid," Gibbs spat. Turning to Barbossa; "Give up this madness now."

"I cannot," Barbossa proclaimed. "Ever walk on the beach, look back, and see your footsteps behind you? It's like that, except the footsteps lie  _before_ me."

"Footstep, actually," a crewman interjected.

An attempt at lightening the mood fell on unwilling ears; Kairi, Gibbs, Barbossa, and the lieutenant all turned unpleasant glares on him.

Piercing shrieks; sound carried clear across the water, and the screams of terror and pain hit those gathered on the shore as though they were standing in the midst. Kairi turned to face the source in an instant and was terrified when she found herself looking straight at the HMS Providence; she could see figures rising out of the water and leaping up to the ship, see it rocking in a manner that no natural attacker ought have caused, and she knew in an instant Gibbs' words to be true. Mermaids - the Providence was being attacked by creatures of the sea itself.

Barbossa was the only one who failed to show any reaction to the cries. "We travel by foot," he proclaimed. "Gibbs, I require a heading."

"But, sir," the lieutenant objected, "the men-"

"They be dead already," Barbossa proclaimed.

The shrieks seemed to intensify, and the lieutenant stepped forward in anger. "They don't _sound_ dead!"

The captain turned around, holding something to the lieutenant's neck - a pistol, his finger on the trigger. "Oh, is that so?" he demanded. "Well I hear nothin' but... seagulls, nesting. What is it that you hear?"

Kairi's gaze was transfixed on the ship as she saw it pitch and veer, all the more fiercely with every passing moment.

"...Seagulls. Nesting." The lieutenant's voice was that of one who would give any other answer if he could. "Nothing more."

Barbossa drew his pistol away. "Heading, Gibbs?"

"Ah...!" Kairi stumbled back as she saw the Providence tip over the point of no return; the ship began to sink beneath the waves, and her hands went up to her mouth. "Kingdom Hearts...!

A firearm's click forced her to pull her gaze away; Gibbs had similarly been watching the sink in terror, but Barbossa had now turned the pistol on him. "Your head, or my heading. I'll have me one or t'other. I don't care which."

With a low grumble, Gibbs began to lead the way; Kairi could tell from a glance that near every surviving member of the crew had as heavy a heart as she did as they made to follow... save Barbossa, who marched after Gibbs with no hesitation but the adjustment of his grip on his crutch.

* * *

The trek took them through a thick, unpleasant jungle; as the sun began to set amidst their travels, Kairi came up between Barbossa and Gibbs. "So," she mused, "I know I'm slow to ask, but blame your crew for not letting me on the ship. What heading exactly are we going after?"

"The Fountain of Youth," Gibbs proclaimed.

A few paces in silence.

"...Seriously?"

A few more.

"...Seriously."

Barbossa laughed. "Carryin' a weapon like that," he proclaimed, "you didn't strike me as the sort to disbelieve in fairy tales, Miss Kairi."

Kairi glanced down at her Keyblade. "Okay, maybe you've got a point," she conceded.

"We're not headed straight for the Fountain, yet," Barbossa informed her. "Our first stop is to locate a pair of silver chalices. You're to stay with the crew and keep them safe, should any more of those creatures make to threaten them."

A good couple hours into the journey, they found their destination - a ship that seemed to have gotten  _stuck on the edge of a cliff_ , far away from the sea. Barbossa's proclamation made a good deal more sense after that; the ship looked precarious enough that a single man's presence would be enough to topple it, and Kairi knew a formation was harder to organize than one man.

While he was gone, she struck up a conversation with Gibbs. "So," she inquired, "how long did Sora tolerate Captain Barbossa?"

Gibbs seemed surprised at the name she brought up. "Sora? You know him?"

"I did," Kairi confirmed. "And Barbossa? That's not the kind of person Sora considered friends."

"You've a point there," Gibbs admitted. "Barbossa helped us to free Jack from a prison of sorts. As soon as the  _Pearl_ was clear of those unpleasant waters, Sora left the deck to fend off an attack and didn't get around to boarding again until there were more pressing matters than who was at the helm." A smile rose on his face as he added; "Last I saw, Sora, Donald, and Goofy had taken off on a ship of their own."

Kairi blinked. "A proper ship?" she asked.

Gibbs nodded. "Aye, and one that Jack was rather taken with, at that. Sora - he strikes me as Jack's sort. Freedom, and whatever enjoyment that freedom can get him - but not at the cost of anyone undeserving of it, least not a cost that they can't earn back. Awfully foolish, at first glance, but put him in a dangerous situation, and you're best off elsewhere if you're no ally."

"That sounds like Sora," Kairi agreed.

* * *

Barbossa returned with pleasant tidings and unpleasant tidings - or, at least, that's how Kairi saw it. The bad news was that the chalices he was after were missing from the ship; there was an encampment not terribly far from where they were positioned, set up by a rival party en route to the Fountain. The good news was that he didn't discover that on his own - as they started off in the direction of the enemy encampment, Kairi caught sight of a familiar figure following on a nearby route, and approached him.

"Captain Jack Sparrow?"

A grin rose on Jack's face even before he turned to face her, and widened when he saw who was greeting him. "Kairi!" he greeted. "I have dearly missed you and your blade."

Kairi shook her head. "Well, I wouldn't have minded sailing with- Wait," she realized, "my blade?"

"Yes," Jack confirmed. "I... may have been deceived into sailing with a man who looks to be on decent terms with the Heartless."

"Oh, wonderful," Kairi muttered. "As if I didn't have enough trouble already."

Gibbs was approaching as well; Jack seemed similarly pleased to see him. "Gibbs!" he greeted. "I see Kairi's done a fine job keeping you safe." Gibbs offered him a smile as he turned back to the path at hand, only to turn back with a less-pleased glare. "You took my map," he reprimanded, striking Gibbs lightly upon his brow.

That seemed slightly incongruous to Kairi's ears. "Took?"

Jack and Gibbs spent the trip in conversation that Kairi decided she would rather not involve herself with; they reached a point soon enough that they could make out the enemy's encampment. "Stealth over force," Jack insisted, turning to Barbossa. "I'll take over from here, on account of your... condition." He eyes Barbossa's peg-leg unpleasantly. "You don't have termites, do you?"

"I appreciate your concern, Jack," Barbossa reprimanded, "but I'l be keepin' ye company all the same." To the lieutenant; "Hold here and wait for my signal."

Pirate and privateer took off towards the camp - and their absence was long enough for Kairi to find herself speaking with Gibbs again. "So, she inquired, "What exactly is the situation with Jack? Is he after the Fountain?"

"Last I heard," Gibbs conceded. "But he seems to have had something of a change of heart." His gaze went towards the camp where Jack had taken off. "Sailin' under the likes of Blackbeard, I'm not surprised."

"Yeah, well..." Kairi breathed a heavy sigh. "Anyone with Heartless tendencies would make one reconsider their choices."

"Aye," Gibbs agreed. "Would I be right in guessing that you mean to do something about that?"

Kairi turned. "Me?" She gave an awkward chuckle. "Maybe if I can get a heading for the ship and a certainty that the Heartless will be the only ones on board. I can handle mindless creatures of the dark, but humans and Nobodies can think and plan. I don't trust my ability to counter-plan if it's one who bested someone like Jack."

Gibbs nodded. "Aye, anyone who could get the jump on Jack isn't to be trifled with without a quick wit."

"My thoughts exact... Huh?" Movement in the direction of the camp got Kairi's attention. "Wait... is that-?"

Something was moving up the side of a palm tree nearby. A close look revealed it to be  _Jack_ \- he was bound to the trunk, and using his bonds to his advantage. Gibbs got the lieutenant's attention as Jack crested the top of the tree; after a moment, something was slung around another tree, and it started to  _bend_.

"That'll be the captain's signal," the lieutenant observed. "Men, with me!"

The Providence's crewmen took off; Kairi was about to follow when Gibbs stopped her. "Wait!" When Kairi turned to face him, he quickly elaborated; "Jack's entire semblance of strategy relies on being unpredictable. If you charge in and attempt to aid him, you're as like to help him as you are to suffer from what he's doing. The men are going to help Barbossa; you and I are most helpful to Jack by waiting right here."

Kairi turned towards the camp. Soldiers had taken note of the bending tree; as she watched, it became abundantly clear there were only humans involved. Content that they could handle themselves, Kairi agreed to wait until Jack, Barbossa, and his soldiers were dashing back up to them.

"Go!" Barbossa instructed to the crew. "Prepare to move out!" Then, to Jack; "I'm sorry about the chalices, Jack, but I've an appointment to keep."

Jack grinned, drawing something out - a lovely, engraved silver goblet in each hand. "No need!" The Providence crew went quiet for a moment at the sight, broken only when Jack suggested, "Shall we have a drink?"

Barbossa rolled his eyes. "We'll drink at the Fountain!"

He and his crew departed; Kairi turned to the captain with a smile. "Witty, Jack," she praised.

That didn't get the reaction she was expecting; Jack recoiled, looking highly disturbed.

"What?" Kairi objected. "That was a compliment!"

"Yes," Jack admitted, "but one I've not heard in quite some time." Then; "Kairi, Mister Gibbs, come with me. I could use your help in preparing something for Blackbeard."

* * *

After a tiring night involving a good walk, some rope, and a pig, Jack, Gibbs, and Kairi found themselves within eye's reach of what seemed to be the terminus of a river. They found the crew Jack was sailing with in short order; Gibbs and Kairi kept their distance as he confronted them, though not far enough for Kairi to make out what they were saying.

"You brought the chalices, Sparrow?" asked a heavy-sounding voice.

"Aye," Jack confirmed. "Oi!"

That was their prompt; Gibbs stepped into view, holding the cord tied several laps around the abdomen of a pig... and the stems of the silver chalices. Kairi made sure to draw Destiny's Embrace before stepping out after him, her left hand curling around the shaft as they came into view. Jack was standing before a rather dark-suited man with a many-studded tricorne of wider brim than Jack's own, and a verifiably black beard... which seemed to have some burned-out  _coals_ resting in it. At his side was a woman who looked rather... swashbuckly; on seeing Kairi and Gibbs, she immediately remarked to Jack, "I see you brought a friend."

"I did."

Behind the man Kairi presumed to be Blackbeard, there was a rather tired-looking crew. Many of them were human, but she did note, to some concern, that there were a few Heartless pirates as well - humanoid red figures with large scimitars and emblems on their chests. On seeing the chalices, Blackbeard turned to Jack. "And the one-legged man, he is near. Aye?"

 _One-legged man? Is he talking about Barbossa?_ Kairi remembered the 'privateer' saying that the Providence crew were just a means to his end.  _Is Barbossa coming here... to fight this guy?_

"Aye," Jack confirmed in response to Blackbeard's question. "Now, before I go just handing them over, I do have one or two conditions."

"Name them," Blackbeard proclaimed.

"Firstly, I'll be having my compass back," Jack mused. Then; "No, that's secondly.  _Firstly_ , upon your word, you'll bring no harm to Angelica."

Blackbeard glanced at the woman beside him. "I'll make no vows to the likes of you, Sparrow," he warned. "But it costs me nothing to admit she was never in harm's way."

A satisfied smile rose on Jack's face. "Secondly then, priorly firstly, I _will_ be having me compass back." When no compass was forthcoming; "Please? I do deserve it. Do you have any idea how difficult it was to catch that filthy pig?"

With a sigh, Blackbeard turned to Angelica; she tossed something to Jack, who accepted it gladly.

"Thank you. And thirdly, Mr. Beard..." Jack stepped forward. "There are times - not very often - when I do reflect upon my heinous misdeeds. Chief among them, I note how poorly I have treated Mister Gibbs, my loyal first mate."

"Aye!" Gibbs admitted. "Now that you bring it up-"

"Left him to rot in jail, I did," Jack continued, unheeding of Gibbs' interruption. "And Miss Kairi, there, she helped me with a timely escape, and I but sent her off on a wild goose chase that might have earned me benefit had she succeeded."

"So you  _were_ just trying to fast-talk me in the port," Kairi observed. "Why did-"

"Used them both like tools," Jack interrupted again. "Didn't care. Still don't. But point being, you must let them go free."

Blackbeard was quiet for a moment. "Is that it?"

Jack hummed. "Think so," he admitted. "Quick, or it's off with the pig and good luck getting those chalices."

Gibbs tried to speak up again. "Jack, if it's all the same to you, I'd be just as-"

"Done," Blackbeard proclaimed.

With a nod, Jack turned around. "Release the swine."

Kairi quickly grabbed the chalices that had been tied around the pig's body; as soon as she had a firm grip on them, Gibbs release the rope, leaving the pig charging off. She stepped towards Blackbeard, and as she got near the Heartless behind him seemed to grow restless; yet Blackbeard seemed to dissuade them with but a motion of his hand, and then he took the chalices with one motion, prompting Kairi to stumble back.

Gibbs spoke up again. "Perhaps, if you don't mind, I could tag along with you folk for a-"

Blackbeard's crew began to march; the Heartless pirates took a few threatening steps towards him that had Gibbs backing away and Kairi readying her Keyblade. Jack made to bring up the back of the procession, and before he followed he set something into Gibbs' hand. "This'll lead you to freedom, mate."

Then he took off, sprinting to catch up.

Kairi followed him with her gaze until the brush obscured him before turning to Gibbs. "Is he gonna be alright?" she asked. "Those Heartless that were following Blackbeard..."

"Aye, don't you worry about Jack," Gibbs insisted. "I dare say he picked up a few tricks last time he sailed with Sora. What we need to worry about is this."

He raised the item he had been given, and Kairi recognized it as the compass Jack had demanded back. "A compass?"

Gibbs smiled. "Jack got us our freedom," he observed. "And I reckon there's a particular freedom that he would have us take back. Let's head back to beach."

"But... the Providence went down," Kairi reminded him. "Tell me you're not thinking of doing any serious sailing on my raft."

"She's seaworthy enough to travel the coast, no?"

* * *

Two people made much better time than twenty; Kairi and Gibbs made it back to the beach in fine time to find the raft all but untouched. Kairi was able to propel the raft in the direction they wanted, and Gibbs kept his eye on the compass until they found what they were looking for - an elegant-looking ship moored such that it would remain hidden.

"That's... Blackbeard's?" Kairi asked. "Does Jack want us to commandeer it?"

"...No," Gibbs observed, "I don't think so." He glanced down at the compass. "But then..."

Kairi quickly realized just how many people she had seen marching with Blackbeard. "Wait... there's no crew on board. The ship's undefended... except for Heartless." She turned to Gibbs. "Did Jack maybe need you to get something from  _in_ the ship?"

"That's a possibility," Gibbs admitted. "Bring alongside her. I'll wait for your clear."

They brought the raft up to the boarding side of the ship, and Kairi climbed her way on deck. Immediately was her theory proven - as soon as her feet landed, Heartless pirates began to appear around her, and Kairi quickly summoned Destiny's Embrace, taking a fighting stance. It wasn't just the scimitar-brandishing sorts that had accompanied Blackbeard and his crew, either - several blue figures with glider-like wings appeared in the air, and a couple of tricorne-wearing Heartless with anchors in place of their left hands manifested with their hands raised above them.

"Nice of him to keep such a plentiful crew," Kairi snarked.

Blackbeard's ship have a very broad deck, and that made the fight considerably easier than it would have been in more confined quarters; Kairi cut through the Heartless with ease enough, and threw one last Pearl across the deck before stepping up to the side and calling Gibbs on board. Once Jack's first mate was on board, he drew out the compass again; after just a moment's glance, he led Kairi to the upper level of the ship, and inside he found himself staring at a fence before a double door.

Kairi's Keyblade made short work of the lock; Gibbs slid the fence aside and pulled the door open to reveal what seemed to be a display. Ships in bottles, lined up to be admired. For a moment, Kairi was under the assumption that Blackbeard was simply one of those dark sorts who had made himself a hobby for when he was not involved in his employment, but then a streak of lightning filled one bottle - and she realized that each bottled ship was  _rocking_ , on moving waters, sails billowing.

"Oh, wow," Kairi exclaimed. "Those are...?"

"Seems the Heartless aren't the only ill magic Blackbeard's been involved with," Gibbs mused. He glanced at the compass again before seizing one particular bottle - a ship with black sails. "Ah... Here's what Jack wanted us to get our hands on." He turned towards Kairi, holding the stern of the ship towards her so she could see the name on the back of it.

"...Black Pearl?" Remembering what Gibbs and Barbossa had said about Sora's exploits in this world, Kairi asked, "Is this Jack's ship?"

Gibbs nodded. "Indeed it is," he confirmed.

He eyes the other ships in the case, and Kairi shook her head. "Leave them," she insisted. "Let's get out of here with the Pearl before Blackbeard's crew comes back."

* * *

She and Gibbs found refuge on a quiet spit of land, not far from Whitecap Bay; the sun was on its way down before Jack arrived in a longboat. "Gibbs! Kairi! You made it!"

"Yes, Captain," Kairi confirmed.

"And I trust we managed a profit from our joint enterprise?" Jack inquired.

Gibbs held out the bottled Black Pearl. "Feast your eyes. The compass led me straight and true."

Kairi double-took at that. "What exactly is that compass?" she asked.

"This little thing has a wonderful enchantment," Gibbs admitted, drawing out the compass in his other hand as Jack picked up the Pearl. "Hold it, and she'll point to whatever it is you want most."

"If you're anything like Sora," Jack mused, "I'll wager a guess you'll not be sailing with us any longer. Perhaps we can reward you with a heading."

He nodded to Gibbs, who offered the compass to Kairi. Deciding not to object, Kairi accepted the compass from Gibbs, holding it carefully in both hands for a brief moment before opening it up. The arrow was pointing straight her way, and she quickly turned around to find that Whitecap Bay lie behind her. Confusion wrought her - she had no interest in the Fountain of Youth - but after a long moment, she gazed back down at the compass.

It still pointed at her. She turned in place, and found the disc unmoving; then she moved the compass to the side without rotating it, and the arrow turned so it was centered on her.

A quiet sigh passed through her lips, and she set a hand on her heart. "...Thanks, Jack," she murmured, closing the compass. "But what I want most... is gone."

Jack's hand closed over the compass; Kairi raised her gaze to find an unusual solemness upon his features. "Sora...?"

"...Yeah," Kairi confirmed.

"...You know," Jack mused, "ever since I first got the Pearl, I've been hunting down a means to see that I am Captain... forevermore." He lifted the compass from Kairi's hand, stepping back. "But every time I find myself getting close, the cost is too high - for me, or for who I'm sailing with." He shook his head. "But I've thought long and hard. All I've done, all I've seen... I don't know that I've met anyone who would ever forget me, whether they curse my name or hope I'm sailing free."

A smile rose on his lips. "And I'd say that's the best way to live forever."

Kairi tried to return the smile. "You think?"

"Sora wasn't too different," Jack admitted, "try as I might to convince myself otherwise. I mean, he wasn't quite a pirate. Too honest, and too ready to help people. But he'd never throw his friends to the wind, would he? And there's none who'd ever forget him, if they've seen him."

Tears rose in Kairi's eyes. "You think?"

"I know." Jack nodded. "That boy, and that blade... They'll be remembered forever."

"...Thanks, Captain."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First world off the island, I took the Days route. Second world off, I did Olympus around an FF character like BbS. When I decided on the Caribbean for the third world, I thought I'd try and write my own version of a movie thereupon.
> 
> Did everyone see that? Because I will not be doing it again.


	5. Ephemerality

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With the big reveal about what the X's in everyone's names did, I'm kind of surprised Lea PREFERS to go by Axel. I mean, I get the whole 'subconsciously remembering Xion' thing, but considering the recusant's sigil and the way he was trying to get everyone to rememorize it, I didn't think he'd ask Kairi to stop calling him Lea.

"...Nothing?"

Kairi was distressed to find the pack on her raft was  _empty_ \- she'd run through her food supplies, and had nothing but a third of a bottle of drinking water remaining. Part of it, she knew, was her ride behind the Providence putting her in a foul mood and leaving her with nothing to do but eat. But most of it, she quickly deduced, was another fallacy in her, Sora, and Riku's assumption that worldly travel wouldn't be very different from island travel - that there would be plenty of opportunities to restock their food supplies at or between each world.

With a sigh, Kairi raised the bottle to her lips, finishing it off before stuffing it back in her pack. "I've gotta find somewhere to resupply," she murmured, drawing out Sora's Gummiphone as she considered her options - where was she sure she could refresh her stock?  _I'm not really in the mood to try and head back to the islands, yet... It would be a little rude to wash up in Disney Castle and ask the King for supplies... I don't think I want to visit Hollow Bastion any time soon..._

_...and I'm kinda craving sea-salt ice cream._

No sooner had had that last thought rose in her mind than a glow from before her told her she was coming up on another world.

* * *

When the light faded, Kairi was back in the realm of conspicuous moorings; her raft had run aground in the clearing outside the old mansion of Twilight Town. A small smile rose on her face as she got to her feet, seizing the pack from the mast as she started towards the town.

She was halfway through the forestry when someone else emerged from the underground tunnel leading to the Tram Common; a black-haired figure who otherwise looked to be Kairi's mirror image, in a dark top and white skirt.

"Xion?"

"Kairi?" A pleasant smile rose on Xion's face. "Hey, what brings you to Twilight Town?"

With a weak chuckle, Kairi shrugged the shoulder she was holding the pack over. "Rations," she admitted. "I take it Riku or Naminé called you guys?"

"Axel's the only one with a Gummiphone," Xion reminded her. "But yeah, Naminé called him and he passed it on to the rest of us."

"Turns out, travelling between worlds takes a bit bigger of a food supply than we used to think," Kairi confessed. Glancing around the woods; "So... what were you coming out here for?"

Worry danced across Xion's expression. "Oh, right. You should probably know. We've been hearing unpleasant rumors about... Dusks."

That gave Kairi cause for concern. "Dusks?" she echoed. "As in, the Nobodies? Proper, white-bodied Nobodies?"

"Those are the ones." Xion shook her head. "I hope it's just something mundane, and the stuff the Organization's done so far has just made people paranoid... but I can't dismiss it out of hand. I was gonna give the old mansion a sweep. Roxas is off to Sunset Terrace, and Axel's scouring Market Street."

"...Do you guys want a hand?" Kairi asked.

Xion shook her head with a quiet smile. "Appreciate it," she admitted, "but just let us know if you run into something. Twilight Town's already got a few good Keys to take care of it."

"Alright."

The islander descended into the tunnel, and Xion watched her start towards the Tram Common before she turned towards the mansion.  _Kairi's got enough weighing her heart down. The last thing she needs is trouble from Organization stragglers._

* * *

When Kairi emerged from the tunnel, she was given a stark reminder that Twilight Town was so named because its sunset was  **perpetual**. This was one of those worlds where the sun maintained its position in the sky, no matter the passage of time; a lack of community bustle caused her to glance at the clock tower, revealing that she had arrived an hour and a half prior to  _midnight_.

"Hey there, Kairi!"

The familiar voice drew the islander's attention; she turned to find her fellow student of the Keyblade approaching. "Axel!" she greeted. Then, her face falling as she saw the blue-haired figure at his side; "Saïx?!"

Axel - Lea, rather - quickly put himself between them before any weapons could be drawn. "Uh, Isa, actually," he insisted. "Second verse, same as the first."

Kairi wasn't exactly in a hurry to relax, but after a moment she recognized a few subtle differences - bluish-green eyes, ears pierced rather than pointed - and lowered her hand. "...Alright..."

Lea quickly changed the subject. "So, uh, I take you ran into Xion if you're coming from the woods?"

"Yeah," Kairi confirmed, "she mentioned you guys had something of a situation."

"Ah, it's no real situation," Lea insisted. "Munny to Mystery Gear, someone who had a bad encounter with the Dusks just jumped to conclusions." He aimed a finger at he pack over Kairi's shoulder. "So, that's sitting a little lighter than anyone on a voyage oughta have it. That why you're in Twilight?"

"Took the words out of my mouth," Kairi admitted. "I'm a little later than I expected, though. Where am I gonna stock up at this hour?"

Lea scratched at his head. "Not sure what to tell ya," he confessed. "Although... between you and me, there's a well-chilled stock of sea-salt ice cream under the tracks where Hayner's gang hangs out."

Kairi giggled at that. "I need a little more than ice cream on a voyage between worlds," she argued, "but thanks."

She stepped past him and started across the Tram Common; Isa waited until she was well out of earshot before sighing in exasperation.

"Don't take it personal," Lea insisted. "Well, I mean,  _do_ take it personal, but don't take it as something that only happened to you."

"First Roxas and Xion," Isa observed, "and now Kairi."

"Come on," Lea reprimanded, "face it. You were a total punk in the Organization. Kept treating Xion like less than a Creeper, that kind of abuse doesn't get forgotten. And how friendly were you with Kairi while you were keeping her in the prison?"

Isa's gaze fell. "It's hard to make up for the past when it keeps getting brought up," he countered.

"I blame the peacetime," Lea admitted. "If you get the chance to swoop in moon blazing, she'll be a little more eager to accept it."

"That doesn't mean I  _want_ a chance like that," Isa argued.

Lea's brow furrowed. "Point."

* * *

Kairi  _did_ end up snatching a bar of Hayner's ice cream stash as she made her way up the Station Heights; it was strangely pleasant to walk through Twilight Town in what was ultimately the dead of night, with nothing but the sunset and the ambience. As she arrived at the Station Plaza, she found someone stepping out of the station; Roxas looked pleasantly surprised to see her. "Kairi!"

"Roxas," Kairi returned, a smile on her face. "How's the search going?"

Roxas rolled his eyes at her lack of subtlety. "Well, Sunset Terrace was a bust," he admitted. "Rumors didn't even go that far, let alone whatever's causing them. I'm gonna give the Underground Concourse a sweep."

Kairi raised an eyebrow. "Why didn't you just go through the concourse on your way here?" she asked. "Or are the trains still running at this hour?"

"They are," Roxas admitted. "And I've kinda missed the feel of the train." He eyed Kairi's half-empty stick. "Did you snatch a bar from the usual spot?"

"Don't tell Hayner," Kairi pleaded.

"Well, what can you offer me?"

" _Roxas!_ "

The two shared a brief bout of laughter at that; Kairi took another bite of the sea-salt, and Roxas shook his head. "Don't worry, my lips are sealed. But get rid of the evidence." He started towards the tunnel entrance.

"...Hey, Roxas," Kairi interrupted. "Can I ask you... kind of a weird question?"

With a sigh that implied he had been expecting this, Roxas turned to face her. "Let me guess," he mused. "Hayner, Pence, and Olette, right?"

Kairi nodded. "Yeah. I mean, Naminé told me about the other Twilight Town. How did... I mean..."

"How did I become such fast friends with them." Roxas finished for her. "When I didn't even know them, really."

"Pretty much," Kairi admitted.

Roxas shook his head. "On my one hundred and eighteenth day in the Organization, Saïx issued a day off."

" _What!?_ "

"Yeah," Roxas admitted, chuckling. "I mean, I assume it was Saïx, anyways, because there was no way Xemnas gave that order." Turning back to the story at hand; "I didn't have any of Sora's memories, so that was the first vacation I ever had. Axel told me the whole point was to 'do what I like'. And the only thing I really knew I liked was meeting up with Axel and Xion for sea-salt ice cream after work."

"So you came to Twilight Town to get sea-salt ice cream?" Kairi asked. " _That_ was your whole vacation?"

"That was the plan, anyways," Roxas confirmed. "Then, when I was coming through the sandlot, I found Pence and Olette helping Hayner practice his Grandstander act. Hayner saw me, took a couple things the wrong way, and challenged me to do better. I did a pretty decent job, and he apologized for being so rude."

Kairi smiled. "So you  **had** met them," she observed.

Roxas nodded. "Yeah. Just the once, but it was enough. DiZ made the other Twilight Town from data about the real hearts of the people around here. So when he put me inside, and blocked off my memories of the Organization, and made me think I was just another kid with ambitions for the Struggle, I gravitated towards Hayner and Pence and Olette. And because  _those_  guys were created from data about  _these_ guys..."

"...there was enough to make a real connection," Kairi observed. "They still remembered you, from that vacation. Just a little bit."

"Yeah," Roxas confirmed. "I could make friends, just from something as small as that." A smile rose on his face. "I guess I really am Sora's Nobody."

"I guess you are," Kairi admitted, smiling back.

He took off into the underground, and Kairi turned towards the Station.  _The train to Sunset Terrace runs at this hour? I guess there are worse ways to kill time._

* * *

Kairi discovered on the train that her ice cream stick had  _WINNER_ emblazoned across the shaft; she set it into her pocket and decided to ask Roxas or Xion or Lea about it if she saw them again. Part of her hoped that she  **wouldn't** see them again - at least, not without them being able to confirm a lack of Dusks in Twilight Town. Sunset Terrace proved as empty as Market Street was; Kairi made her way up Sunset Hill and discovered a beautiful horizon view that she immediately regretted not having had the chance to witness when last she was here.

A moment's rest meant the long exertion she'd recently gone through finally took its toll; the next thing Kairi knew, she was opening her eyes to the twilit clouds above. Slowly, she sat herself up, finding the train passing on the tracks below; she raised a hand to her lips to stifle a quiet yawn, then let herself fall back again.

A face framed by black hair loomed above her.

"Woah!" Kairi shot bolt upright in a start; a glance over her shoulder revealed Xion laughing at her reaction. She quickly turned back to the horizon, muttering, "Give me a break, Xion."

"Kairi, you sleepy hypocrite," Xion teased. "What would Riku say if he heard about this?"

"Don't you freaking dare," Kairi pleaded.

"I won't tell him," Xion assured her.

A glance around them revealed there were no convenient clocks around, and the one on the Central Station clock tower. "How long was I out?" Kairi asked, getting to her feet.

"Depends on when you fell asleep," Xion snarked. "The city's about to be awake; most of the good places to resupply open in twenty minutes. We should probably head back to Market Street."

The two decided to take the train back; as they stepped on board, Kairi drew out the stick she'd emptied earlier. "Say, don't suppose you know what this is?"

"You got a _WINNER_?" Xion exclaimed. "Lucky. I stopped counting at three hundred bars and I never got a  _WINNER_."

"Not consecutive, I hope," Kairi muttered. "So... what do I win?"

"That's a good question," Xion admitted. "You'll have to ask at the shop."

Kairi pocketed the stick again. "How'd the hunt for Dusks go?"

Xion hummed. "Me and Roxas haven't found anything. Haven't seen Axel since we started searching."

"I ran into him when I got to the Tram Common," Kairi informed her. "Are you and Roxas really okay hanging around with Saïx?"

"I'm gonna be honest," Xion confessed, "every time I see his face, I remember the way he treated me in the Organization." She shook her head. "But... when I really think about it, I get the feeling Xehanort had a hold on him from the first day he was a Nobody. He's been totally different as a complete person. I've started calling him by Isa just to stop associating him with those memories."

"I know what you mean," Kairi admitted. "Lea's the one who told me to call him by Axel when we were training. I didn't want to think of him as the same guy who snatched me off the Destiny Islands."

"Exactly," Xion admitted. "Who's to say that... Wait..."

Kairi saw it, too - a wave of white, crossing the windows opposite them from the front of the train to the back. The two exchanged worried glances; then both of them shot to their feet, and Kairi's still-empty bag was thrown to the floor as they dashed for the car's exit. Throwing the door open left the wind roaring past them, and Kairi was the one who leaned out, looking for where it had gone.

She was absolutely terrified when she saw the  _massive Nobody_ standing on the caboose.

"So, what do you call that one?"

Xion leaned out behind Kairi, panicking as she saw it - a humanoid figure the size of a Darkside, with massive spiked shoulders and tendrils flailing in the wind from around its neck like a scarf. Its hands had thumbs but no fingers, its feet bore a strange shape reminiscent of heeled shoes, and its face was emblazoned with Nobodies' emblem - the emblem of the Organization.

"Oh, no..." She grabbed the islander's shoulder. "Kairi, the city's about to wake up. We have to take that thing down before the train makes the station."

"No kidding."

Kairi quickly grabbed the ridge of the car's roof, pulling herself up and quickly stepping away to give Xion room to do the same. She took a stance too familiar, and with a flash of light the Kingdom Key appeared in her hands; Kairi took her own ready stance, and Destiny's Embrace appeared in hers as she turned it towards the Nobody.

"...This is nice."

Xion's quiet murmur, almost unheard over the wind and the roar of the train, drew Kairi's attention. "What?"

"Getting to fight with you," Xion elaborated. "Rather than against you."

A small smile rose on Kairi's face, and she nodded. "Yeah. It kind of is."

They both charged forward, and the massive Nobody twisted forward, its body contorting as it tried to swipe at them. Both girls met its attacks on their Keys, then tried to retaliate; their opponent, however, barely reacted to the blows to its hands, arriving at the edge of the next car and twisting itself upright to stand there facing them. Kairi aimed a Pearl at its face, and Xion a shot of Blizzaga at its chest; the former hit with a satisfying tremor, but the latter barely got a reaction. The Nobody twisted itself into a domed arc over them, and whirls of thorns began to rise around them, forming Creepers.

"Get the big one!" Xion told Kairi. "Leave them to me!"

"Right!" Kairi charged at the giant's head, ducking under one Creeper which took the form of a blade and tried to swipe at her; as soon as she was near enough, she dealt the emblem a charging thrust, followed by an upward and then downward swing and a hard swipe to the side. As the Nobody righted itself again, a Creeper took the form of a lance and tried to impale her from behind; she quickly raised an orb of Waterga around her before directing it at the giant's head, and Xion struck the smaller one down as the magic splashed against the giant.

Nobody thorns whirled around Xion before she could try and join the barrage; with a flash of light, her limbs were bound in beams as she was dragged off the back of the train, and though her Keyblade was still in her grip, she couldn't get it at an angle to free herself as the giant drew its head towards her. Kairi quickly threw her Keyblade up across Xion's right side while the Nobody was bringing its fist back for a punch - the strike broke the bonds on her leg and sword hand, and Xion lashed the Kingdom Key at her left leg and used the entrapment of her left arm as leverage to twist around the blow and strike the Nobody aside.

As it recoiled, Xion found herself hanging, and broke the last thorns in an effort to descend towards Kairi again - but the Nobody's hands closed around her before she could hit the train, and it drew her back to one side and then hurled her into the air, its arms windmilling in an effort to strike her. A well-timed Aeroga gave Xion lift enough to weave around the attempted strike, and she came down Keyblade-first on the Nobodies' emblem upon the giant's face; it tumbled to the train, and as Xion landed it fell off the side.

"Is it finished?" she asked.

Kairi dashed up to the edge of the train, and was distressed by what she saw - the giant Nobody was standing horizontal on the side of the train cars, its back to them, with a giant sphere of  _power_ welling in its grip.

"Nope!"

The Nobody arced downward, passing through one of the archways the supported the train tracks and then coming up on the other side of the train; Kairi quickly hurled Destiny's Embrace again, this time striking the center of the sphere. The attack  _imploded_ , dragging the giant upward and then causing it to come down upon the train; Xion and Kairi exchanged glances before charging the Nobody, and before it could right itself each brought her Keyblade into a heavy, leaping strike that cleaved an  **X** across the giant's face.

With a scream of energy, the Nobody burst into thorns, scattering in the air and fading away.

And not a moment too soon - Central Station was coming up ahead. The girls quickly dismissed their Keyblades, dashing to their original car and swinging inside before it reached the archway. Xion quickly closed the door behind her as Kairi reclaimed her yet-empty bag.

"Feel like an ice cream?"

* * *

Kairi was somewhat surprised when Xion took her back to Central Station once they had the ice cream - to sit  _atop the Clock Tower_  as they enjoyed their treat.

"You mean you come up here  _every day_ when you have your ice cream?" Kairi demanded. "You, Roxas, Axel, Hayner, Pence, Olette?"

"And Isa," Xion added. "Axel brought Roxas here on his first day in the Organization. We usually got our missions in Twilight Town while the town was sleeping - you know, black cloaks with hoods look super-suspicious - but Axel tended to pick up some ice cream and linger around, so he came up here so he wouldn't get attention. First day I used the Keyblade, Roxas brought me up here for the 'icing on the cake'." She took a bite of her bar. "This became our rendezvous once me and Axel got to meet each other properly. We'd always try and come up here - every day we got the chance."

"It didn't strike you to just grab the ice cream and head back to the castle?" Kairi asked.

Xion gave her a look. "The castle? In the World that Never Was, where everything is either white or black?"

"Okay, point," Kairi conceded, "but... are you telling me you don't feel even the least bit worried sitting over a drop like this?"

"Do  **you**?" Xion asked.

Kairi glanced towards the Station Plaza. "...A little bit," she admitted. "It feels like one wrong move could leave me plummeting, no control over how I land."

There was a long moment of quiet at that; they were each a third of the way through their ice cream before the silence was broken.

"...On my one hundred and fourty-second day," Xion told Kairi, "the Organization sent me to deal with an impostor. Someone who was wearing our cloak. I found Riku running around while he was trying to help Sora, and I fought him... and I lost. He called my Keyblade a sham - worthless. And when I got back with the report, Saïx stopped treating me like a member, and started treating me like a... broken tool." She shook her head. "I began working myself too hard, trying to prove him wrong. Day 164, I passed out from exhaustion. Saïx laughed at Roxas for being worried about me. Three weeks later, I woke up, went on a mission with Roxas and Axel, and collapsed again. He called me defective."

She set her half-finished ice cream down at her side, uncaring. "I was at full speed again the next day, but... Saïx never treated me any different. Kept calling me puppet, creature,  _it_. I don't even think he saw my face - not the way Roxas and Axel did." Xion closed her eyes. "On my two hundred and seventeenth day, we were all here for ice cream. I went to leave early... and I almost fell off the clock tower."

Kairi turned to her. "What happened?"

"A headache," Xion replied. "Out of nowhere, at the worst possible time - while I was standing on the ridge, here." She opened her eyes. "Least that's what I told myself in the moment. But looking back... I think I did it on purpose."

"What!?" Kairi started. "Xion, why...?"

"I was tired of the way I was treated," Xion mused. "I was starting to doubt everything in the Organization. But me and Roxas weren't like the rest of the members - we didn't remember our lives before we were Nobodies. Even when I started to see Sora's memories, I thought they were just dreams - just my imagination running wild while I slept. So I didn't know anything else but working for the Organization." She shook her head. "Didn't know any way to stop it... but to end it."

It was then that she turned to face Kairi. "But the moment my footing slipped - the  _instant_ I started to fall - I was scared. I wanted to keep living. I saw Roxas and Axel panic when I began to fall, and I knew I wanted to keep meeting them here for ice cream, every day, forever. Roxas caught me, and Axel suggested we go to the beach next time we had a vacation. And I started looking for answers instead of just giving in because I had questions."

Kairi sighed. "Xion..."

Xion set her hand over Kairi's. "I know it's not quite the same," she insisted. "But I want you promise me that you're never going to make the mistake I did. There are a lot of people - in a lot of worlds - who would be sad to see you go."

"I promise," Kairi assured her.

* * *

Once Kairi had finished her ice cream, she and Xion went grocery shopping for the continuation of her voyage; they were discussing the possibility of grabbing something from Le Grand Bistrot to go when Lea's "Hey, Xion!" drew their attention to him, Isa, and Roxas approaching.

"Hey you guys," Xion greeted. "Nice timing."

"So," Isa inquired, "did that ominous silhouette, twisting as it crept along the skyline, have something to do with you two?"

"Please tell me you guys were the only ones who saw that," Kairi protested.

"Far as I can tell," Lea assured her. "I don't even think the town's awake enough to look up yet."

Roxas turned to them. "What were you fighting?"

"Big Nobody," Kairi admitted. Holding a hand at her shoulders; "Huge spikes." Then, swinging a hand along her neck; "Weird scarf."

"Emblem here?" Roxas asked, raising his own hand before his face. "Pointy heels?" He raised one leg, grabbing at his heel with his other hand.

Kairi was surprised. "You know it?"

Roxas nodded. "I think so. I ran into one of those in the _other_ Twilight Town. Sort of." He shook his head. "Wasn't fun. You two are lucky you were together."

Isa glanced at the bistro. "Were you two thinking of getting breakfast?" he asked.

"I was thinking of maybe ordering something to go," Kairi admitted.

"That's not gonna happen," Isa observed. "Not at a proper restaurant like this. You get a table, you eat, then you get the check. At best, you might get a take-home bag, but that doesn't keep well enough for the kind of travelling you're doing."

Kairi scoffed. "At this rate, I might as well get a couple bars of sea-salt ice- Oh!" She reached into her pocket. "That reminds me. Any of you guys know what this gets me?"

She held out the  _WINNER_ stick from earlier; Roxas took a glance at it. "Nothing big," he admitted. "Just gets you a free bar."

Xion gave him a look. "How do you know that?"

"Um, no reason," Roxas admitted.

Lea had a wistful expression. "Oh yeah..."

Roxas turned to him. "Now you remember?"

"Remember what?" Isa inquired.

"It's nothing," Lea insisted.

Xion glared at Roxas. "Did you get a _WINNER_?"

"No."

"You got a  _WINNER_ , didn't you? When did you get a  _WINNER_?"

"Leave me alone!"

"Tell me!"

"No! Get your own _WINNER_."

"Tell me when you got a _WINNER_!"

Kairi glanced down at her own  _WINNER_ stick amidst their argument. "Free bar of ice cream?" she murmured. "You know what, that sounds like a good idea, actually."

That got everyone's attention. "Really?" Lea asked. "I never ended up using that thing. I only remember it when I'm already halfway down a bar, and I can't eat two at once."

"Same here," Roxas admitted.

"Likewise," Xion agreed. "You just had a bar, you think you can handle that much salt in a row?"

Kairi shook her head. "It's... not for me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alternate 'give me a break' scenes included Kairi and Xion coming across Roxas asleep, Xion and Roxas doing a redux of post-Mission 31 when they find Lea asleep, and saving it for a return to Destiny Islands so that Riku could find -Xion- asleep.


	6. Terror

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Replicas take the form of the heart inside them. And the replica that Xehanort had in his second Organization to look like Riku was purged and then taken to Radiant Garden for Naminé. First time I saw the ending, during the period between 'Naminé wakes up in the computer room' and 'EPIC SAD', my thoughts as a whole were classifiable as dirty.

Kairi had made sure to claim the prize from her  _WINNER_ stick before she departed Twilight Town; now, as she sailed on the Ocean Between once more, she knelt at the edge of the raft. A bar of sea-salt ice cream was closed in her right hand, and she set her lips against it just lightly before lowering it into the sea of stardust on which her raft floated.

"Here, Sora."

A full minute passed before she drew the now-empty stick out, setting it down at her side. A tune emerged from her pocket - but it wasn't the usual ringtone, being a long string of sixteen low-pitched beats, and nor did it continue until she answered, for it had already gone quiet as she reached into her pocket. Drawing out Sora's Gummiphone revealed the screen had an icon like a trio of gears upon it, arranged like the King's seal below them was a message, reading  _Update received_.

"Update...?" Kairi remembered her conversation with Mickey, Donald, and Goofy.  _Right... the King said he was gonna have Chip and Dale add something to stop me from being suspicious._ A small smile rose on her face.  _I know why Sora **wanted** to change the way he looked while he was sailing with Jack... but what kind of world would he  **need** to change the way he looked?_

In answer to her question, a light loomed before her, to tell her a world was approaching.

* * *

When Kairi arrived, her raft was moored on a dark path, with streetlights visible along the route. Hoping that this wasn't a well-travelled route and her raft would be left unharmed, she got to her feet; a closer look revealed that the lights were  _jack-o'-lanterns_  upon arched poles, and a sign nearby was perched upon what appeared to be a scarecrow with a pumpkin head.

"Halloween Town?" Kairi read aloud. "What did Sora get up to in this pl-"

She cut herself off; her tongue had brushed against something very weird at the start of the word 'this'. A glance down at herself revealed that the Gummiphone update had already done its work; her dark-resistant outfit had been replaced with a very macabre-looking dress adorned in spiderweb patterns, though it was open enough to give her freedom of movement. Long gloves covered her hands and crested her elbows - rather elegant, save that the fingers came to  _points_ \- thigh-high boots rested upon her legs - with protrusions like bat wings on the heels - and a mask of some sort rested over the left side of her face. Running her tongue over her teeth again told her something was definitely out of place; a peripheral glance revealed a colour that was definitely  _not red_ where her hair should have been, and she quickly drew out Sora's Gummiphone, opened the camera, and positioned it before her to snap a picture of herself.

Then she turned it back around, opening the album to check the photo she'd just taken.

The mask resembled a cat's face, and the area around her eyes was darkened; her canines had been sharpened into fangs, and her hair had turned cherry-blossom pink.

"Wow," Kairi murmured. "I have got to wear this on the islands sometime."

She started her way down the street, watching the shadows cast by the jack-o'-lantern streetlights; she eventually reached a black iron gate, whose bars were spaced wide enough for her to step through without needing to open it. Beyond that lay a town square, of sorts, but done in frightening manner; brick walls circled it, with doors or gates set to limit access to certain homes, a fountain in the center gushed with sickly green liquid that didn't look like it was a good idea to swallow or see in, one building had a rooftop that looked like an open maw, and there was a  _guillotine_ in the center of the square. With such threatening decor, Kairi couldn't help but wonder what kind of inhabitants this world possessed.

Such then was she given unpleasant surprise when Heartless began to appear around her - ghostly Heartless with movements like puppets.

Destiny's Embrace appeared in Kairi's grip. "I really hope you guys aren't allowed to just run free here."

Previously, Kairi had deemed Shadows to be the most annoying Heartless - not the most threatening, but the most annoying - courtesy of their ability to sink into the ground and render themselves immune to Key or spell for seemingly as long as they liked. Kairi had never, herself, fought these ghosts before; the moment she tried, she found them usurping the Shadows' throne, for their ability to vanish into the air in a strange glow, becoming entirely unseen until they reappeared and made to strike her, made them hundreds of times more aggravating than any Shadow could ever be.

She was down to one ghost when a door opened; a tall, thin figure in a black suit stepped out, wearing a spider-esque tie and appearing to be nothing but bones. The last Heartless appeared but two steps in front of him; he quickly razed his skeletal hand across it, stunning it long enough for Kairi to Firaga it into oblivion. As the Heartless broke, the skeleton regarded the lingering flames with curiosity plain on his skull.

"Sora?" He turned around as Kairi stepped towards him. "Oh, you're not Sora."

"Nor have I ever been mistaken for him," the islander snarked. "My name's Kairi."

"Jack Skellington," the bone man replied, offering his hand.

Kairi giggled lightly as she accepted it. "I guess 'Jack' isn't that uncommon a name," she mused. "So, how do you know Sora?"

"Oh, he's come here a couple times before," Jack admitted. "The Heartless began giving Halloween Town trouble a year or so ago; Sora, Donald, and Goofy have come by then and again to help deal with them." He scratched his skull uncertainly. "If you're here, does that mean you're the new fang on the job?"

"...Kind of," Kairi conceded. She ran her tongue over her new fangs again. _Those are gonna take some getting used to._

Jack beckoned for her to follow him. "You should come to the lab," he proposed. "With the Heartless activity picking up recently, the doctor's been trying to find a way to pinpoint the source of the problem."

"That's... actually really clever," Kairi observed. "Sure, let's go."

* * *

The laboratory screamed 'mad scientist' from the moment Kairi got a glimpse of it; a large metal table lay in the center of the room, connected to a massive generators with a couple tesla coils protruding out the top like horns. Other strange devices and tables littered with scientific equipment were scattered around the edges of the room; sitting before a large device with strange displays was a stark-white figure in a mechanized wheelchair, whose head at first appeared to be bald but on closer look appeared to be  _hinged_.

"Doctor Finklestein!" Jack greeted. "How'd the device coming along?"

"I reckon it's almost finished," the doctor mused, seizing the controls on his chair to turn it around. "It just needs one more touch. And who is this?"

"Um, hi," the islander mused. "I'm Kairi. I hear you're having trouble with the Heartless?"

The doctor turned his chair back towards the device. "It's not that it's anything new," he insisted, "just that it's been getting worse."

 _That's a surprisingly casual attitude towards creatures that can reduce you to nothing._ Kairi's gaze fell.  _But... maybe it's not that weird. If all the inhabitants of this town are creatures of fright like this, I suppose Heartless don't seem too out there._ A dreadful thought rose in her mind.  _Wait... does that mean they **do** just let the Heartless run free? I mean, it's not like civilians in any world are able to stop Heartless as a whole, but-_

"Kairi?" Jack's inquiry dammed her train of thought; Kairi raised her gaze to find the skeleton looking at her curiously. "Something wrong?"

"Uh, it's nothing," Kairi insisted. "So, um... how much of a problem are the Heartless, really?"

Jack sat down on the table in the center of the lab. "Usually, there aren't enough of them to be a problem at all," he admitted. "Most of the people in Halloween Town can either hit hard enough to take care of them or run fast enough to stay away from them. But when they get more numerous, like this, they tend to get in the way of the Halloween preparations." He shook his head. "The Heartless hurt people, instead of just scaring them. It goes against everything Halloween is."

 _Oh... now that makes sense._ Kairi nodded.  _This world is full of people who can defend themselves - and anyone else who can't. The Heartless are more an annoyance at this point._

The doctor's call of "Here we are!" drew her and Jack's attention to his device. "That should do it."

"Is it finished?" Jack asked.

"Yes," the doctor confirmed. "Head outside, and I'll throw the switch."

"Outside?" Kairi echoed.

Jack took off outside, and a confused Kairi followed; once they were out on the stairwell, Jack pointed to the rooftop. To Kairi's surprise, the conic roof split itself open, and from it emerged a shape that looked like a satellite dish, pointing straight up.

"That'll do a round sweep of Halloween Town," Jack explained. "It'll pick up all the Heartless, and then it'll zero in on the biggest gathering and point the way there."

"As opposed to just telling the doctor where it is?" Kairi inquired.

The dish turned to a slight angle, whereupon it began to turn counter-clockwise. One rotation, two rotations; then changed again a third of the way through a third rotation, dropping to a more earthward angle and twisting around clockwise, coming to a stop at an 11 o'clock position.

It hung there for two seconds... and then something within the rooftop  _exploded_ , black smoke pouring out of the gap as the dish withdrew.

"Oh, dear," Jack murmured. "That doesn't look good."

"Well, I think it told us what we needed," Kairi mused. "Why don't you go help the doctor? I'm gonna check out where that was pointing."

Jack nodded. "Alright. Be careful."

"You too," Kairi returned.

* * *

On the other side of the square with the guillotine from where Kairi had moored her raft was a graveyard of sorts. However, it was lined with gargoyle statues rather than graves, and at the far end was a coffin whose lid was slightly ajar, revealing that it had no body inside - and, indeed, seemed to have no bottom. Kairi was peering in, wondering if it was perhaps a passage of sorts, when a female voice behind her asked, "Sora?"

A bitter smirk rose on Kairi's face. "What," she asked, "don't tell me Sora wore a _dress_ , here?"

She turned to find someone stepping towards her - a woman in a patchwork dress. As she got closer, it became clear  _she_ , herself, was rather patchwork, as well; her arms had prominent stitching at the shoulders and wrists, and there was a hint of such stitching on her legs, though high enough that her dress hid rather it was a round seam. On seeing Kairi, she immediately realized her mistake. "Oh, I'm sorry," she pleaded. "I saw your weapon, and..."

"It's alright," the islander assured her. "I'm Kairi. Sora was a friend of mine."

"My name's Sally," the patchwork woman replied. "What are you doing here?"

"I take it you saw that blast," Kairi mused, glancing in the direction of the doctor's lab - which was still smoking. "I arrived and found Heartless causing trouble. Jack introduced me to the doctor, the doctor pointed me at the Heartless, and the Heartless are going to get another taste of this." She raised Destiny's Embrace at her side.

And the statues around them began to move.

Kairi groaned as she realized the gargoyles weren't just statues - the stone hues faded away, revealing winged Heartless with orange claws. "I had to open my mouth and talk," she beomaned. "Take cover."

Sally ducked behind one of the statue bases lacking Heartless as one of the fliers dove towards Kairi. Her Keyblade stopped it mid-flight, and she quickly broke it with a few quick swings; a Pearl flew at one that seemed to be welling up for a fire breath of sorts, and she leapt aside as another one tried to jab its wings at her. A quick Thundaga stunned the lot of them; she cut through one with a downward swing, another with a thrust, and hurled another Pearl at the last one - which she was distressed to see turn into a  _ball of fire_ that closed the distance and then turned back into a Heartless.

She met its kicks on her Keyblade and brought it down on the enemy; as it broke into pieces, she turned to Sally. "You alright?"

"I'm fine," Sally assured her. "Thank you." Then, stepping forward; "You said the doctor pointed you in the right direction. Where exactly did he direct you?"

"Well, he didn't himself," Kairi admitted. "His machine said the biggest group of Heartless were..." She glanced towards the pillar of smoke before aiming at a nearby wall with a comment of "thereabouts." On the other side of the wall - fence, really - was a hillside section of the graveyard. "I'm gonna head that way and see what I can find."

"...Are you sure?" Sally asked. "There's been a few very unpleasant things over there."

Kairi hummed. "I'm sure." Then, changing the subject; "So, you knew Sora? What exactly did he get up to around here?"

Sally closed her hands before her. "Halloween Town had an unpleasant sort by the name of Oogie Boogie," she explained. "He was working with the Heartless. The first time the Heartless showed up, Jack tried to involve them in the Halloween performance."

" _What!?_ "

Kairi's exclamation only had Sally shaking her head. "We didn't know what they were at the time," she insisted. "I didn't realize they were a threat before Jack began trying to work with them. And Jack's... sort of overenthusiastic." She sighed as though it had caused trouble more than once. "Oogie took what Jack and the doctor were using to try and direct the Heartless; Sora, Donald, and Goofy helped to take him down. Then, a year later, Jack had one of his bouts of inspiration with Christmas Town."

"So there's a Halloween Town, and a Christmas Town?" Kairi mused.

Sally smiled at her comment. "You're surprised?"

"No, not really," Kairi admitted. "It's just weird."

"Jack's the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town," Sally continued, "and he's responsible for helping plan the performances. There are times when his inspiration runs a bit dry, and it gets him into a slump. He's tried his hand a Christmas a couple times in an effort to spark his mind again. One of those times coincided with the Heartless causing more trouble again. Somehow, Oogie came back and took over Christmas Town while Jack was distracted. Sora was one of the biggest reasons Jack called it quits on the Christmas front afterwards."

"He helped Jack get out of his funk?" Kairi asked.

"Sort of," Sally confirmed. "But he also helped convince Jack that Christmas... just wasn't something Jack was equipped to do. He started out looking forward to the idea of a Halloween Town Christmas, but one good look at Christmas Town changed his mind in an instant. Something about how honest he is made Jack realize that he was out of his depth."

Kairi smiled. "Sora was like that," she agreed. "He didn't hide how he felt about something - good or bad. I'm not surprised that the way he felt showed Jack his faults."

Sally nodded. "And I think Jack's all the better for it," she observed. "He's been overflowing with inspiration since."

"I bet."

There was a moment of quiet; then Kairi pointed towards the coffin. "So, is that some kind of secret passage, or...?"

* * *

The coffin was, indeed, a sort of secret passage - one that took Kairi to a different section of the graveyard. This part seemed to serve more as a garden of sorts; the different headstones were marked with the names of plants, with bushes or flowers growing before each. Kairi made sure to pointedly avoid the one labelled  _deadly nightshade_ as she tried to find her bearings; the plume of smoke from the doctor's lab told her she was still a few degrees off of her destination. What looked like a tool shed turned out to be another passage; this put her on the hillside she had seen while speaking with Sally, which she discovered was  _curled_ like a cone of soft-serve frozen yogurt.

Heartless gave her trouble here - spindly Heartless wrapped in banadages like mummies - but it was nothing a warrior of the Keyblade couldn't handle. The graves here weren't surrounded by overgrowth, but nor did they seem to actually mark where people were buried; a stumble revealed that at least one of them served as a  _switch_ of sorts, causing the tip of the hill to uncurl and give her a foothold high enough to leap over the opposite wall.

That put her at a large bridge, on the other side of which was a prominent gate. More Heartless got in her way at this point - different ghosts than the one's she'd fought in the plaza, that could flip themselves over to switch between grounded melee attacks and flying magic. Kairi was more annoyed than hindered by them, and once they were finished, she stepped through the gate to find herself on a bridge.

Or what had once been one; it currently led to a massive drop, with some rubble at the bottom of a wide-open area that implied this had once been the site of an impressively-sized home; a river of the same green liquid as the town square ran by, but visibly was not deep enough to make the fall surviveable.

"Wow," Kairi murmured. She edged towards the point where the bridge ended, finding it had once been a _rope_ bridge and still had a few planks hanging below. "That's a huge drop..."

_There are a lot of people in a lot of worlds who would be sad to see you go._

Her conversation with Xion in Twilight Town rose in Kairi's mind, and she shook her head in self-reprimand; glancing towards the doctor's lab revealed she was in roughly the direction the dish had pointed her. "This is the place?" she murmured. "I don't get it... am I gonna find some horde waiting for me when I get down? If I can find a way **to**  get down..."

A long moment of quiet; then she drew her Keyblade, aiming it at the bottom of the drop. A twister of Aeroga appeared about a leap off the ground, and Kairi took two steps forward and jumped from the cliff, aiming her fall towards the twister. As she reached it, the magic tried to throw her back upward; her existing momentum meant it only slowed her fall with a lurch, and Kairi managed to land somewhat smoothly as she reached the ground.

Flame burst from the ground before her as she landed; Kairi raised her gaze to find a large, armoured Heartless standing before her. Its plates were a dark red, and where its hands should have been were large blades that looked like volcanic rock in the process of cooling, veins of heat still glowing bright.

A smirk rose on Kairi's face, and she raised Destiny's Embrace towards the Heartless.

Ice cracked to her right before either of them could make to act; Kairi turned to find an identical Heartless standing there. No, not identical - not quite. This Heartless had plates of deep blue, and the blades where its hands should have been carved out of jagged ice that frosted in the air around them.

Kairi's face fell as she realized she was outmatched against two formidable-looking foes.

Voltage surged to her left, neither of the existing opponents having moved to attack before Kairi found yet a third Heartless had appeared. This one had the same figure, but with plates of vibrant green, and its blades seemed to be fashioned of thunderbolts, albeit these ones taking a more pointed shape.

An irritable growl escaped from Kairi's lips as her gaze fell. "Okay, now you're just being mean."

She swept her Keyblade back, and all three Heartless dashed towards her, bringing their right blades forward to slice at her; she leapt straight up, letting their edges collide beneath her. Another Aeroga struck the Heartless and knocked them back before Kairi dropped into it, and then propelled her into the air, giving her ample room to soar out from the killzone between the three; she came down behind the flaming one, thrusting into its back with her Keyblade and then casting a Blizzaga into its plates before it had even begun to flinch from the blow.

It was thrown forward from the magic as the volted one charged Kairi; she quickly moved her Keyblade to meet its spinning blow, leaving her skidding back far enough that its follow-up parallel thrusts were no threat to her. The icy one was coming up at her side; she quickly ducked under its swipe, coming up behind it with a hard swing and then throwing a Firaga at point-blank to propel it as well. The green one dashed towards her again, and this time Kairi swung her Keyblade in the same motion as the Heartless' edge, in the opposite direction.

The size of the Heartless gave it more inertia than Kairi's lithe frame, she found herself spinning, and it followed up with an upward swing that she was barely able to meet on her Keyblade, which still knocked her off her feet - though did not bring her harm. The red and blue ones had recovered, now charging towards her side by side; she hurled a pair of Pearls at them before they could close the distance, then leapt away when they tried to strike, their spinning blows clashing against one anothers' blades before they thrusted at her.

Kairi ducked under two different blades, far too near to each other; then she raised her Keyblade between them, striking each to a different side. A Firaga was cast at the icy Heartless, and a Blizzaga at the flaming one; the volted one was charging her again, and this time a whirl of Waterga was what stopped its blows before slamming into the Heartless itself and throwing it back. She cast another spell before it had even hit the ground, Aeroga keeping the green Heartless whirling uncontrollably in the air as the red and blue recovered and made to charge her again.

Powerful magic began to well up in Kairi; she hurled another Blizzard spell at the flaming Heartless, and this time when it connect it  _ripped ice_ across the ground around it. A Fire spell was thrown at the icy Heartless, and this one razed the earth over a wide radius, even singing Kairi's arm as she turned her attention back to the now-recovered volted Heartless.

"This is a little more fair."

The Heartless charged.

Kairi charged.

The two leapt at one another, and Kairi brought her Keyblade into each of its blades in midair, halting its momentum, before slamming it down on the Heartless' helmet, cleaving it in two. She landed on the ground opposite, and silence permeated the open space as she-

No. Not quite silence. If Kairi strained her ears, she could hear something - heavy breathing, as though someone had been trying to run. She turned towards the sound and found a depressed portion of the openness, with a bit of rubble that would make a Heartless as large at those twin-blades hard-pressed to get in. "I know you're there," Kairi called. "Come out. You didn't have anything to do with those Heartless, did you?"

Three figures emerged from a gap in the rubble - all small, young-looking figures that were barely half Kairi's height, each wearing a mask.

"No way," objected one in a devilish mask.

"Nuh-uh!" concurred another in a witch's outfit.

"We couldn't if we tried!" agreed the last, whose clothes had painted-on bones.

Kairi shook her head. "What are your names?"

In the same order, they took off their masks and answered; "Lock!" "Shock!" "Barrel!"

"So, the islander mused, "how long did those things have you pinned down here?"

"Just a couple hours," Shock insisted. "We ran down here to get away from some other ones and found those ones instead."

A sigh of exasperation from Kairi. "Did they only appear when you out enough to end up in the middle of them?"

"Yeah," Barrel confirmed, "how'd you guess?"

"I just thought of the worst possible way for three huge Heartless to give you trouble," Kairi muttered.

Lock's attention was on her Keyblade. "Hey! That thing's like Sora's!"

"What the heck?" Barrel protested. "Where'd you get that?"

They had Kairi's attention in an instant. "How do you know Sora?"

"He's one of Jack's dumb, stupid friends!" Shock complained. "Him and Jack got rid of Mister Oogie!"

Kairi's expression changed at that mention - the one who went against Halloween Town. "So you were friends of Oogie Boogie, were you?"

"Yeah!" Lock confirmed. "Oogie always cheered us on when we were playing our pranks!

"When Jack took him down," Barrel added, "we had to work for Doctor Finklestein and mess with his experiments to have any fun!"

"Troublemakers," Kairi observed. "Is that how you get your kicks? Causing trouble for everyone else?"

Shock stepped forward. "What are you gonna do about it?"

Kairi aimed her Keyblade forward, a Pearl appearing on the tip; Shock yelped, and Lock and Barrel both grabbed her in fear.

Silence... and then Kairi threw the magic over their heads, letting her Keyblade vanish.

"Nothing," she replied. "Almost everyone in Halloween Town can either hit hard enough to deal with Heartless or run fast enough to get away from them. What do you think that means for the victims of your pranks? How long do you think it'll take before they catch up to you? Hm?"

The bemasked trio said nothing.

After a moment, Kairi glanced around, remembering what they said about their encounter. "How did you  _run_ down here?" she asked. "That's a sheer drop."

"The river leads under the bridge, and then back to Guillotine Square," Barrel replied.

"What, how did you get down here?" Lock argued.

"I jumped off the cliff and had the wind slow my fall," Kairi muttered, turning around to face the river. "That would've been nice to know sooner."

* * *

When Kairi got back to the lab, Sally had made her way there as well; the doctor and Jack had fixed the part of the scanner that had exploded, and looked about ready to give it another try.

"I don't really think that'll be necessary," Kairi admitted. "I found some pretty big Heartless already, and ones that size tend to bring more with them."

"Still," Jack mused, "best not put it to waste."

They made their way out and watched as the roof opened up again; the dish extended out, dropping to its skyward angle. One rotation, two rotations; when its third rotation was a third finished, it dropped to a downward angle that just barely didn't scrape the dish against its support, sweeping back and forth in the manner of someone shaking their head before extending skyward again and withdrawing it.

"Looks like whatever you did was enough," Sally observed.

"Looks like," Kairi mused.

Jack turned to her. "Say, Kairi. While you were running around looking for Heartless, did you happen to come across three kids in masks?"

Kairi giggled. "You mean Lock, Shock, and Barrel?" she asked. "Yeah, they were pinned down by the big ones. Soon as I took them out, they stopped hiding. Almost thanked me before they realized I had a Key like Sora's."

"Just see to it you be careful around them," Jack warned. "They've got some trouble with the border between 'harmless prank' and 'dangerous action'."

"I believe it, if they hung around Oogie Boogie," Kairi mused. "Don't worry, I can take care of myself."

She stepped out of the lab with a yawn - reaching to her mouth to stifle it ended up brushing against her fangs, which had been annoying her whenever she wasn't fighting. _If I do wear this on the islands,_  she decided,  _I'm not doing the teeth. Halloween does not need to be that thorough._

With the Heartless population back to a manageable level - and having had a good few pleasant conversations - Kairi made her way through Guillotine Square and back to where she had left her raft. As she stepped down the street, however, she heard a familiar trio of voices... speaking of things that she did not want to hear.

"What's this thing supposed to be?" Lock.

"Who cares! It's ugly and lame!" Shock.

"Let's get rid of it!" Barrel.

Kairi panicked, breaking into a sprint as Destiny's Embrace appeared in her grip. The bemasked pranksters were standing before her raft; Barrel had a pumpkin shape in one hand, and with a motion of the other something began to spark upon it - a fuse. It was a bomb, and he made to throw it at the raft without a care for who it belonged to.

" ** _Don't you dare!_** "

The islander's scream startled the trio; Barrel's grip slacked on the bomb, causing it to bounce before them. It was a threat to both the pranksters and her vessel; Kairi charged between Lock and Shock, striking the bomb with her Keyblade at such an angle as to throw it into the air - high, high into the air. It blast a good distance away from the street like a firecracker, and for a brief moment, Kairi was nearly petrified with the terror of how close that had come to destroying her raft.

Then she turned to the pranksters with an angry, tearful glare, and levelled her Keyblade on them again - this time, with intent to  _swing_ it if they should force her hand. "Don't. You. Freaking. Dare."

"What are you doing!?" Shock protested.

"What am  **I** doing?! What are  ** _you_** doing!?" Kairi protested. "You can't just go and blow up things like this because you don't like the way they look!"

"That thing doesn't belong here!" Lock snapped.

"Yeah, it doesn't even belong in Halloween Town!" Barrel conceded.

" _I don't **care** if it belongs here!_" Kairi yelled. "This thing is the product of hours of hard work! Me and Sora and Riku spent days building this thing! I'm not going to let three little  _brats_ destroy it!"

"If Sora was involved with that thing," Shock argued, "then we hate it even-"

" ** _Shut up!_** " Kairi screeched - and the force of her yell had the trio pulling away in terror. "Get out of here!  _Get out of here!_  If you try to so much as  _scratch_ this thing again I will  _beat you all **black and green** ,_ _do you understand me!?_ "

The force of her words had the brats yelling in terror; they took off down the street, dropping their masks mid-dash and not even pausing to pick them up.

Fear seized Kairi's heart, and she gasped in fright, stumbling back and leaning against the mast. Tears began to pour from her eyes, and she pulled off the cat mask sitting askew on her face as she tried to catch her breath.  _No... no, this isn't.... this isn't the one we made. This isn't the raft Sora and Riku helped me make. That was..._ She closed her eyes, trying to blot out the world.  _That one is just a memory. This was just something I put together when I decided to go on this journey._

She slumped to the surface of the raft, burying her face in her arms. _...But that doesn't mean you can just let someone break it. Just being a recreation doesn't mean it's worth any less. And Sora not having anything to do with this one doesn't change the fact that he'll never get to sail on this with you._

_Keep it safe - for you, and for him._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided when I started this fic that I was going to disregard the Epilogue and the Secret Movie. Not quite sure yet whether that means I have the audacity to write the Reapers' streets or not.


	7. Care

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A couple headcanons to fire off during this chapter.
> 
> So, the Kingdom Hearts Wiki is a bunch of hesitant pricks. Setting aside the edit war I've seen about Shibuya (because Sora waking up face-down in the scramble across from 104 is apparently too 'vague' to be considered a concrete TWEWY reference), they point out that the first fight in the Keyblade Graveyard in Kingdom Hearts III is a million Heartless, Unversed, and Nobodies. Oh, sorry - make that "a million [citation needed] Heartless, Unversed, and Nobodies". Because there's something wrong with a ballpark estimate that barely qualifies as hyperbole.

Getting her food supplies from the shops in Twilight Town had its upsides and downsides compared to gathering it on the Destiny Islands. On one hand, there was much more variety involved than the fish, mushroom, and water she had started with; Kairi had meat, vegetables, fruits, and a package of cookies that Xion had suggested (which Kairi resisted the urge to eat all at once for fear of regretting it later), as well as a selection of bottles of different  _flavoured_ waters ("Isn't the whole point of water that it has no flavour?" Kairi had asked, to which Xion had laughed and insisted she get some). On the other hand, Kairi had to admit that the packaged and well-kept food didn't quite have the same effect of nostalgia as the stuff she had gathered herself.

Still, beggars couldn't be choosers; fact of the matter was, she was on a journey, and that meant she needed rations. Kairi had just finished off a good portion of meat when Sora's Gummiphone went off in her pocket, and she wiped her fingers clean before drawing it out and tapping it to answer.

Naminé's face greeted her when she answered.  _"Hi, Kairi."_

Kairi smiled. "Hi, Naminé. Something up?"

 _"Just thought I'd check in on you,"_ Naminé insisted.  _"Lea mentioned you'd stopped by in Twilight Town and had a bit of an encounter."_

"Nothing a guardian of light can't handle," Kairi assured her. "Don't worry, if I run into some **real** trouble, I'll let you or Riku know." Then; "Is he okay with you calling him Lea?"

 _"Actually, now that I think about it, he did ask me to call him Axel,"_ Naminé recalled.  _"I just met four of the Organization's founding members on my way out of Radiant Garden, and they're all going by their original names. With Lea and Isa being complete people again, I think of them by those names, too."_

"Fair enough," Kairi conceded. "Actually... I kinda wanted to ask someone about that."

Naminé seemed surprised.  _"About what?"_

Kari leaned back against the raft's sail. "You and Roxas are mine and Sora's Nobodies," she recalled. "That's why you were existing as part of us. But you grew hearts of your own, and when you returned to us, they remained separate. So Axel, and Saïx, and the others... When they were Nobodies, they would have grown new hearts, too, right? So how come they don't have that separation?"

 _"That's a little different from us,"_ Naminé admitted.  _"Me and Roxas were created under unique circumstances. You were never turned into a Heartless - your heart was just separated from any physical body. That sort of... kick-started the process of creating your Nobody. But once it did, your heart came back to you. So when I appeared, as a Nobody, I was existing at the same time as you were. Roxas is kind of the same. You brought Sora back from being a Heartless before his Nobody had appeared, but after it began to be created."_

"Does that mean there's something different about your hearts, compared to the rest of the Organization's?" Kairi asked.

 _"Not because of the process,"_ Naminé explained.  _"Not in and of itself. But because you and Sora existed independently from us, that left our memories sort of... mixed up. Roxas didn't have **any** memory before the Organization. And I had fragments of memories from both you  **and**  Sora. That meant we were entirely different people as Nobodies than who we came from. You had your hearts, and we grew our own."_

"And that independence makes you different from the others?" Kairi deduced.

Naminé nodded. _"The other members of the Organization maintained their memories from who they were as complete people,"_ she confirmed.  _"Whether they remembered them clearly, or the memories were buried deep, they still had those chains. And that affected the kind of people they were. Their existence as Nobodies was just a continuation of their existence as people. They didn't grow **new** hearts, really - it was more that... they were  **re** growing their old hearts. When they became complete people again, there was none of the incongruity, so their hearts merged smoothly."_

Kairi sighed. "The heart is freaking complicated."

 _"The phrase 'preaching to the choir' comes to mind,"_ Naminé snarked.  _"Did you follow any of that?"_

"I followed," Kairi assured her. "It's just kind of weird."

 _"Alright, I'll let you go,"_ Naminé giggled.  _"Take care."_

"You too."

Naminé hung up, and Kairi pocketed Sora's Gummiphone with a thoughtful hum.  _That makes sense, when I think about it,_ she observed.  _I didn't really feel any different after Naminé came back to me. And Roxas was pretty different from Sora, yet Sora hadn't changed in the slightest. But Axel acts pretty much the same way as he did when he was a Nobody. Saïx acts a little different, but that's more him not working with the Organization anymore, he's still got that dry wit. Having their Nobodies as separate people would just leave us with two of each._

A glow shone before her, and she raised her gaze as the world approached.

* * *

Once again did the raft moor itself on a high location with no water in reach.

Which raised the question of why there  **was** water in  **view**.

An indignant Kairi got to her feet. "Oh, come on!" she protested, though she wasn't sure who she expected to hear her. "That's a _coastline_ , there!  _Right_ there!" Her raft had ended up atop a  _skyscraper_ , in a massive city, which sat at the water's edge; the water even appeared to form a bay, as she could see an impressive bridge extending a short radius away. "Why did you put me up- Woah!"

Wind is unobstructed at great heights, and Kairi realized with some concern that she still had the sail out; she quickly furled it and cast a few quick spells to keep the raft secure. She was considering adding some physical weight to hold it when something echoed from threateningly nearby that sounded like a vehicular crash; she dashed to the edge of the building and found a shape dancing below that appeared to be a Heartless... with  _ribbons_ for arms.

"Oh, that's why."

Destiny's Embrace appeared in her grip, and she took two steps and leapt from the edge of the building, diving spread-eagle towards the commotion. That same commotion was being approached from a more  _grounded_ direction by seven brightly-coloured figures - two of which, airborne, were of the same make and model.

One of them spoke up for the others. "There is someone - falling - from a building to the - right."

"Oh, no!" muttered a boy in blue, mounted on one of the fliers. "Baymax, catch them!"

"No, wait!" objected a woman in pink. "They're-"

Kairi thrust her Keyblade down towards the Heartless as she neared the ground, and Aeroga ripped up around it, causing it to stumble back - its body was built like a smokestack, with four faces on it, and its hands were juggling strange batons. The twister seized Kairi as she passed through it, the force of the wind slowing her fall enough for her to hit the ground rolling; she quickly leapt aside and hurled a Blizzaga at the Heartless' body while it was still stumbling from her first spell. "Bring it on, trickster!"

"We've seen that before!" cheered a man in a monstrous suit.

"Oh, yes we have!" agreed a man in green.

As soon as the Heartless turned around, Kairi threw a Firaga at it. This one, however, turned against her - the blast struck the Heartless' batons, which were quickly  _draped_ in flames. Her opponent made to swipe at her with its newly-inflamed weapons... and Kairi was surprised when something slammed into its body from the side - two bursts of a brightly-coloured energy, followed by a strange, yellow disc-like shape.

That disc arced around, making to return on its path threateningly close to Kairi - and a yellow-armoured figure dashed up before her, catching the disc and then spinning around to face her.

"Oh. You're not Sora."

"Huh?!"

The Heartless' movement distracted Kairi from asking what she was talking about, and the shift of her attention caused the woman to follow her gaze; a blast of fire flew from one of the Heartless' batons, causing the woman to dash away as Kairi beat the flames aside. Others were approaching from the way the armoured woman had come; one of them, looking monstrous in a decidedly different way from Heartless, Nobodies, or Unversed, leapt up to even with the Heartless' face, and from what seemed to be a mouth emerged a stream of icy vapour that extinguished the Heartless' batons. A man in green armour raised a pair of hands surrounded by shields which appeared to be _formed of light_ , from which flew two shots that struck the Heartless' arms and caused it to drop its batons; then a woman in pink armour hurled a strange sphere forward that collided with the Heartless and _expanded_ into a mess of yellow gunk that seemed to pin the Heartless down.

"Shock it!" she yelled in Kairi's direction.

Quickly realizing that these people had not only seen but  _fought alongside_ Sora, Donald, and Goofy before, Kairi made no objection to the instruction, raising her Keyblade; Thundaga surged around the Heartless, and the gunk seemed to suck up the voltage and run it through the Heartless before shattering apart. Two heavy-set, identical figures in red armour - one of whom had a boy in blue armour clinging to its back - flew around the Heartless so that they were each on one side of it; then they each raised their right hand forward, causing it to  _fly_ off its arm and punch clean through the Heartless, one-two, leaving it spinning.

Kairi quickly threw a Pearl at it to finish it off; the Heartless toppled back, and its heart emerged from it before it vanished.

The red ones' hands flew back to them - or rather, flew back to one another. They quickly descended to the ground, and the blue-armoured boy stepped towards Kairi.

"You do  _know_ Sora, though," he observed.

"That obvious, huh?" the islander asked. "I'm Kairi."

"Nice to meet you. We're Big Hero 6."

* * *

The hero team had insisted Kairi accompany them; the walk to their 'base' of sorts gave them time for introductions. The disc-thrower in yellow went by Go Go; the guy in green with the laser hands used the name Wasabi; the ball-thrower in pink went by Honey Lemon; the younger one in blue was Hiro; the ice-breathing monster was  _a suit_ , worn by a guy named Fred; and the big ones in red were called Baymax.

"Both of them?" Kairi had asked.

"Kind of," Hiro had insisted.

The sun was setting when they arrived at the team's 'base', a garage in Hiro's home; although the setup implied more 'nerd' than 'superhero', Kairi quickly deduced that their powers ran on nerdiness and said nothing. The two Baymax(es?) unequipped their armour, revealing that beneath were not people, but non-threatening, huggable-looking robots in white; once they were unequipped, the team turned to Kairi.

"So," Honey Lemon asked, "are you with Keyblade Hero 3?"

Kairi  _laughed_. There was no power in any world - in  _Kingdom Hearts itself_ \- that could have stopped her from laughing the loudest, most uncontrollable laughter that had ever come from her mouth. For a full minute, more joy and amusement had hold in Kairi's heart than she had felt since Sora's fade; the members of Big Hero 6 exchanged worried glances, and when Kairi found herself coughing, leaning a hand against the wall to support herself, one Baymax spoke. "I am detecting a - shortness of breath - caused by - prolonged - verbal exertion."

After a moment to catch her breath, Kairi turned back to the team. "Tell me... you pulled that... out of a hat."

"What?" Go Go looked offended.

"Tell me that  _you're_ the ones who came up with that," Kairi insisted. "Tell me that they didn't seriously get so excited to be fighting alongside a superhero team that they decided to use such an obvious  _ripoff_ of your name just to try and match up."

"Nope," Fred denied. "Sora said that's what they were called."

"So that's what Donald and Goofy were complaining about," Wasabi observed.

"Oh, χ-blade," Kairi gasped, shaking her head.  _Sora, you lazy bum._

Hiro spoke up. "So, they were just...?"

"Well, I mean, they were a team," Kairi admitted. "Don't get me wrong. But they weren't  _that_ kind of team - not the way you guys are. They were just friends who met by chance, and ended up sticking together when the going got tough." She raised her gaze to the team. "So, how did you guys know Sora? What all happened while he was here?"

"I hope you like long stories," Hiro warned.

"It's an acquired taste," Kairi admitted.

Hiro chuckled lightly, stepping towards a computer setup. "Sora's part of the reason we have two of Baymax," he explained. "My brother Tadashi created him... a good while ago, as a healthcare robot. Then some things happened... and I lost Baymax on the other side of a portal to another dimension."

Go Go noticed Kairi's lack of reaction. "You're not surprised," she observed.

"Was Sora?" Kairi countered.

"...Not now that I think about it," Go Go conceded.

Hiro picked up something near his computer - a green memory chip with a label that read  _TADASHI HAMADA_  in black marker. "When I got back, I still had this," he mused. "This chip is what makes Baymax, Baymax. We used Tadashi's blueprints, and made him a new body. That was when we started working as Big Hero 6, really."

Kairi regarded the chip for a moment as Hiro inserted it back into something near his computer. "And Sora?"

"Well, when the Heartless started showing up," Hiro observed, "so did Sora, Donald, and Goofy. We had no idea how to handle those things, and they arrived at the perfect time." He started tapping at the keyboard. "We decided to ask them for help in figuring out how to deal with the Heartless. Sora helped us get some excellent data. And while we were celebrating a successful fight with some of them... we ran into these."

On the screen appeared a video; Kairi saw Donald, Goofy, and Baymax travelling along a street... and before them was something black and _fluid_. On closer inspection, it was a mess of hovering cubes. "What are those?"

"Fred called them Darkubes," Hiro replied, "and the name stuck. They were being controlled by a Heartless, but they were also running on a combat chip I had first designed for Baymax - when all I was thinking about was making him able to fight. That's when we ran into Riku."

Kairi started at that. " _Riku!?_ "

"Well,  **a** Riku," Honey Lemon said quickly. "That's what Sora said. Meaning there's more than one, I think?"

 ** _A_** _Riku?_ Kairi remembered the clash at the Keyblade Graveyard.  _Riku had a doppelganger in the new Organization... so he was operating in this world?_

"Anyways, Riku had somehow managed to find the old Baymax and the combat chip," Hiro continued. "He said he was trying to 'make a complete heart out of data' - I didn't totally understand it, and Sora was convinced he was just talking to mess with us. He brought the old Baymax to us, and reinstalled the combat chip; without Tadashi's, that meant Baymax was just a mindless fighter. Sora helped shut him down, and I destroyed the combat chip. Then we fixed up Baymax, and added him to the team." A smile rose on his face. "Sora asked to take one with him."

"Of course he did," Kairi mused, smiling back. "Baymax is awesome - Sora would have loved to have one with him."

Hiro shook his head. "Well, you're getting the same 'no' he did," he warned.

Kairi gasped in mock offense. "What, can't I at least take the blueprints with me?" she asked.

"Are you kidding?" Wasabi objected. "You can't just go make Baymaxes of your own!"

The team and Kairi shared a brief laugh at that.

A worrying thought rose in Kairi's mind. "So," she asked, "if that chip 'is Baymax', then...?" She aimed a confused finger at the two Baymaxes.

"Well, when we first got the old Baymax back," Hiro explained, "I copied everything that was on his chips indiscriminately and installed it in him so we had two Baymaxes, full stop. All the combat routines and failsafes I installed in his Hero chip, the Heartless-fighting data we got from Sora, his standard healthcare routines, everything he'd added since, and all his memories were given to both- What?"

Kairi's face had fallen like a bowling ball in whipped cream when he had mentioned memories. "Um... nothing," she insisted. "But if you ever meet a girl named Naminé, don't talk about this with her."

The team exchanged uncertain glances before Hiro continued. "Anyways, I copied everything by rote onto new chips and installed them in the old Baymax. But when we tried to actually work with two Baymaxes, we had a lack of identifiers, and that led to mistakes, and that led to a lot of ugly headlines. So, I cooked up a new system. I kept the Hero and anti-Heartless chips installed, but replaced the healthcare chips with new ones that  _just_ had the medical routines. Then I hooked up Tadashi's chip to a program that backs up to a data cloud, upgraded Baymax's processing capabilities, and installed a network access..."

Hiro trailed off when Kairi angled her head in confusion, a small smirk of familiarity rising on his face.

"Does anybody with one of those Keyblade things know how computers work?" Go Go asked.

"Not that I can name off the top of my head," Kairi admitted.

"Basically," Hiro summed up, "there's one Baymax controlling both bodies. If we give him instructions, he'll assess the situation, and if it's something that  _one_ of him can do, then he'll send whichever one is in a better position to do it. For example, um...."

Fred seemed to have an idea; he detached the headpiece of his suit and set it down smack between both Baymaxes; then he dashed to the other end of the garage, grabbed a swivel chair, and pushed it so it bumped into one. "Baymax," he mused, "bring me my mask."

Both Baymaxes did a brief sweep of the garage; then the one who was not obstructed by the chair reached down, picked up the mask, and started walking towards Fred.

"That makes sense," Kairi observed. "So that way, one can handle any emergencies that pop up, and the other stays with you guys in case another one does."

Hiro nodded. "Exactly. If they're both separate, then they both run like individuals, but when they're together they serve as one Baymax."

"Say, Kairi," Honey Lemon asked, "are you going to be staying in San Fransokyo for very long?"

"Um, well..." Kairi thought for a moment. "The Heartless seem to be giving this place trouble, yet. I couldn't really take off in good conscience without at least helping knock them down a few pegs."

"Hiro-"

"Yeah." Hiro opened up a drawer under his computer, drawing something out - it looked like some lovechild of goggles and headphones, with frames in black and red, and a small antenna extending from each earpiece. "Here, you'll want this."

Kairi accepted the item uncertainly. "What is it?"

"It's an AR device I made for Sora," Hiro explained. "We used it to set up simulations for fighting Heartless so we could get data. It also lets me set visual markers to help prevent you from getting lost - San Fransokyo is huge. And it'll let you communicate with the rest of us over long distances."

"Not a bad idea," Kairi admitted, slipping it onto her face.

When she looked up again, there was a Shadow scuffling in the corner of the garage.

Destiny's Embrace appeared in Kairi's grip... and Fred immediately grabbed it before she could swing. "Woah, woah, woah!" he warned. "It's not really there!"

"Jeez," Hiro laughed, tapping at his computer again; the Shadow flickered out and vanished in a manner entirely different from the way Heartless moved or perished. "Now I _know_ you're Sora's friend."

* * *

A brief conversation about their anti-Heartless training (Fred had been oddly enthusiastic about the word _shugyō_  for reasons that Kairi couldn't place) was interrupted by a news report - the Heartless were causing trouble. Kairi and Big Hero 6 charged out into the city in an instant; San Fransokyo was a very different sight beneath the stars than it was beneath the sun, with buildings alight.

"We've got at least two points to tackle," Hiro observed. "Kairi, take one of Baymax with you and head straight down this street." He pointed Kairi in the right direction. "The rest of us will handle the ones deeper in the city."

"Sounds like a plan," Kairi conceded. "Come on, Baymax."

"Understood."

Kairi dashed down the street Hiro had pointed her towards, Destiny's Embrace appearing into her hand; one Baymax sprinted after her, while the other accompanied the rest of the team down the perpendicular street. They found the Heartless before too long - seven properly-sized, blue-veined Neoshadows, rising out of pools on the pavement - and Kairi quickly hurled a Pearl forward, striking the centermost Neoshadow and causing the others to dash away. Baymax quickly fired his rocket fist forward, punching through the Heartless she had struck and causing it to tumble back; it righted itself and made to approach, only for the returning fist to strike it again and break it into smoke.

One Neoshadow had come threateningly close to Kairi, who met its claw-swipes on her Keyblade and countered with a hard downward strike to send it reeling back. Another leapt into the air, spinning rapidly before soaring towards Baymax; the robot was able to stop its attack on his arms before countering with a downward fist that knocked it to the ground and a knifehand blow that broke it apart. Kairi threw another Pearl at the one she had struck, causing it to split, then raised her Keyblade to cast a Thundaga with intention to stun the rest of the swarm.

Pools opened beneath the Neoshadows, into which they vanished before the lightning could strike them.

Then  _nine_ such pools appeared around Kairi, and Baymax, and from four of them leapt the Neoshadows with whirling blows. One struck Baymax, causing him to stumble back; the others were too far from Kairi to land a clean hit, and she quickly cast a Blizzaga at the nearest one, startling it. The others descended back into their pools, but the one remained out long enough for Kairi to hit it with a Firaga follow-up, causing it to shatter. The pools opened up again, with the remaining three Neoshadows leaping out; this time Baymax was ready for their attack, striking the nearest with a one-two punch, and Waterga whirled around Kairi to deflect the blows of the others before directing it towards the one Baymax had stunned to finish it off.

The two fell back to back, expecting another bout of pools - but only one opened, a good distance away.

From it leapt a  _single_ Neoshadow which spun in the air before charging at Kairi; she quickly brought her Keyblade down on it, warding away the blow but not dealing any significant damage. Baymax made to step forward and strike it before something seized one of his legs - the other Neoshadow was looming out of a pool, its claws digging into Baymax's armour and causing him to fall. Kairi made to swing her Keyblade at it and found it retreating into the pool; that left the other Neoshadow dashing at her from the side, but a timely Aeroga launched them both into the air with only a light scratch on her sword arm, and the Heartless was still stumbling as Kairi struck it with three good swings that left it shattering.

The last Neoshadow rose out of the ground nearby - and six pools appeared around it as Kairi and Baymax approached. More Neoshadows started to rise from the pools; this time, when Kairi brought down Thundaga, it struck true, causing the Neoshadows to break before they could emerge; then Baymax fired his punch at the one still standing, throwing it back. The returning fist missed this time, but Kairi only slid under the retreat and threw her Keyblade at the last Neoshadow, knocking its claws back; her Keyblade returned back at her, stunning the Heartless, and the islander caught it with a spin and threw a Pearl at the Heartless before it could recover, shattering it into smoke.

She reached up for the headset Hiro had given her. "Alright, we're all clear here."

 _"We are **not** clear!"_ Wasabi yelled into the feed, causing Kairi to flinch.  _"We are very not clear!"_

"Does that mean 'come help us' or 'we're running, change of plans'?" Kairi asked.

 _"No change of plans,"_ Go Go insisted.  _"We've got a big crew. They're not tough, but there's a lot of them."_

The memory of the fight at the Keyblade Graveyard became distressingly clear in Kairi's mind. "...Small, black with antennae, moving in formation?"

 _"Nope,"_ Fred corrected,  _"blue and silver with claws and running around like they don't know what they're doing."_

 _"We can handle this, Kairi,"_ Honey Lemon assured her.  _"If you're gonna come back us up, make sure there aren't any Heartless anywhere else first!"_

"How do I make sure?" Kairi asked.

Hiro spoke up. _"Baymax, scan the city!"_

The Baymax at Kairi's side turned, a grid lighting up on his visor; after a moment, he aimed a finger forward. "I am detecting - Heartless - near the - docks."

"Wonderful," Kairi muttered. "Let's go."

She started forward, but Baymax stepped into her path. "We will reach the - docks - faster by - air. Climb aboard."

"Climb a-" A good look at Baymax's back revealed four round points; confused, Kairi let her Keyblade vanish and climbed onto them, finding them to have odd protrusions that she was able to hold onto. As soon as she was gripping with both hands, Baymax's thrusters ignited, and Kairi yelped as he soared upward, arcing in the direction he had highlighted.

As the neared the docks, Kairi saw the Heartless he had mentioned on a parallel street - a whole phalanx of shield-bearing brutes whose shields bore canine faces, and a few smaller figures with witch-like hats, carrying staves tipped with bats. Baymax made to drop, and Kairi leapt from his back, her Keyblade appearing in her grip as she fell; she hit the ground rolling, swiping at one Heartless from the back and then making to strike aside the shield of another.

The shield had far too much leverage; her Keyblade bounced off ineffectively, and the canine on its surface  _lunged towards her_ , its jaws striking at her left arm as she tried to leap away. Baymax's blows were similarly deflected, a heavy bite leaving some unslightly gashes on his armour, and Kairi landed behind him, outside of the formation, as one of the mages raised its staff; Thunder magic began to shower down around them randomly, and Kairi's attempt to take it out with a Blizzaga found the magic being  _sucked into its body_.

"Our - offenses - are proving - ineffective," Baymax observed.

"No kidding," Kairi muttered. "Try and get behind them. Hit them from there."

Baymax proceeded to fire his thrusters just briefly, with the end result of leaping over the group and landing on their other side. As soon as he was grounded, he raised his fist, firing it forward - and Kairi was pleasantly surprised to see the rocket punch  _shattering Heartless_ as it flew. The shield-bearers turned as the fist flew back; Kairi quickly hurled a few Firaga to thin their ranks while they had their backs to her, and when they turned back towards her, Baymax fired his other fist in retaliation.

"Not so tough behind the shields!" Kairi cheered, throwing a few Blizzaga as Baymax received their attention again. Then; "Wait, where's the mages?"

Something sparked into existence behind Baymax; then strange orbs of darkness slammed into him, electing an "Oh no" as he stumbled forward. Kairi panicked as she saw his armour start to tear itself off him; she quickly charged forward, finishing off the last shield-bearer with a hard swing before leaping over Baymax and bringing her Keyblade down on the nearest caster. For having sucked up her spells without even letting them run their course, they were astonishingly succeptible to weapon blows; that one blow shattered one mage, and Kairi had barely landed before coming up with a skyward swing on another and hurling her Keyblade at a third.

Quiet on the streets - the Heartless here had been dealt with.

She turned to Baymax. He was missing all but his foot-based thrusters, his helmet, and one rocket fist; with a groan, Kairi reached for her visor. "Hey, Hiro?"

 _"We're about done here,"_ Hiro assured her.  _"Something wrong?"_

"The Heartless took off Baymax's armour," Kairi replied. "Looks like it's in the same number of pieces as you put it on him, but I don't think I can reequip him."

 _"No worries,"_ Hiro insisted.  _"We're on our way. You said you're near the-"_

Lights out.

Without warning, without cause, the lights of San Fransokyo began to go out; Kairi started for a moment at being plunged into darkness before she realized that it was a  _natural_ darkness, just consequent of a lack of illumination.

"Oh no," Baymax mused again.

"Hiro?" Kairi asked. No response. "Hiro?"

"Our - communications - have been rendered - offline - by the - power outage," Baymax informed her. "We cannot communicate with - Hiro - at a distance until the - city power - is restored."

Kairi sighed. "So much for getting him to help me reequip you," she muttered, pulling off the visor. Then, turning to Baymax; "Wait, then, what about you? Are you and the other one still running as one Baymax?"

"No," Baymax confirmed. "Hiro - installed an - emergency protocol - for situations such as this. We will operate - independently - until such time as the - city power - is restored. Then we will-"

"I'm gonna stop you there," Kairi interrupted, "because I get the feeling the rest is computer talk. Do the two of you at least know where each other were before the power went out?"

"No," Baymax replied. "However - Hiro - will have heard my - analysis - of - Heartless - near the - docks."

"Better than nothing I guess." Kairi thought for a moment. "...Has this kind of power outage ever happened before?"

"I am not aware of such occurrences," Baymax informed her. "This is the first time the - emergency protocol - has been activated."

 _That's like twenty levels of suspicious,_ Kairi observed.

"Kairi! Baymax!"

Go Go's voice drew their attention; Baymax turned around to find her rolling towards them. "You guys alright?"

"We're fine," Kairi insisted. "Where are the others?"

"Hiro said we shouldn't have Baymax flying in the dark," Go Go explained. "I'm the fastest on the ground, so I came to find you guys before we moved out. Now we've got a concrete location. Hang tight."

She dashed back the way she'd come, leaving Kairi and Baymax to wait for the team.

* * *

Once Baymax was reequipped, Kairi and Big Hero 6 retreated to Hiro's garage; several flashlights were turned on and set up around the room to provide illumination. 

"So," Kairi asked, setting the visor on Hiro's computer table, "does this outage seem... weird to anyone else?"

"Kind of," Honey Lemon agreed. "I mean, if it had been storming or something, maybe not, but clear weather like this? There weren't even clouds in the sky."

Fred turned to Kairi. "You think someone might've caused it?"

"I think some _thing_ might have caused it," Kairi corrected. "Maybe the Heartless."

"Can they do that?" Wasabi asked.

Kairi shrugged. "I wouldn't be surprised. I'm gonna head out and look for them."

Hiro made to object. "Kairi, wait. San Fransokyo is a maze already. With the city's power gone out, you're gonna be running around blind. How are you gonna find the Heartless causing this?"

"I... don't know," Kairi admitted. "But I can't just sit around doing nothing. It's given me too much grief already."

The team went quiet at that; Kairi received no further objection as she headed out into the city.

* * *

Hiro had not been wrong - San Fransokyo was indeed a maze. However, Kairi quickly found an easy solution was to  _climb_ \- it was much easier to leap between the rooftops, where she could gaze down to the street level for any signs of possible electricity-stealing Heartless.

She found something promising at the foot of what she was pretty sure was the building her raft was moored atop; several suspicious Heartless were gathered there, each covered in lines _glowing brightly_ enough to light up the plaza. Most of them were yellow-lined, humanoid things with arms that looked like blades; a few others looked like saucers on wheels with stubby arm, covered in red lines, and one was a veritable turret, lined with purple.

With a sigh, Kairi leapt down to ground level. "So," she mused, the sound earning the Heartless' attention, "should I assume that you lot have something to do with this?"

The turret turned its barrel on Kairi; Destiny's Embrace appeared in her hand as it charged, and when it fired, she moved her Keyblade into an upward swing, intending to send it back the way it came.

She was thusly unprepared when the shot  _exploded_ on contact with her weapon - with enough force to throw Kairi across the plaza, leaving her skidding across the ground until she managed to right herself.

"Okay, yeah," Kairi growled, "you've definitely got something to do with this."

The yellow humanoids began to twist, firing beams so bright they threatened to blind Kairi; deciding not to try her luck with a proper defense against any more projectiles, she leapt away from the blows, dashing forward and then weaving around the projectiles when the Heartless corrected their aim. One of the wheeled red ones ripped forward, up in Kairi's face in an instant and spinning with its arms outstretched - Kairi was sent spinning when she tried to block them out of reflex, but only used the momentum to bring her Key into its support, shattering it with the blow.

Voltage  _surged_ out around her when the Heartless perished, leaving Kairi screaming; its heart soared skyward, and the electricity sank into the ground. She stumbled back as the power faded out; and the lights around her began to flicker back to life - just barely, and then dying out again, but it was proof enough.

"I knew it," Kairi groaned. "Alright..."

She swung her Key back, Waterga swelling up around her and then surging forward with a swing of her Key; it splashed out around the humanoids, prompting them to retaliate with another barrage of shining shots. Kairi leapt aside from their blows, leaving them scattering in the air as a surge of Curaga washed over her body; then she cast an Aeroga to knock the lot of them into the air. The turret took aim and fired at her again; Kairi let it pass over her head, only to find that the shot had been  _homing_ , and its arc when it tried to redirect towards her left it slamming into the air and blasting behind her.

Which had the unfortunate side effect of throwing her in the Heartless' direction.

Kairi righted herself and leapt straight up, leaping over the turret Heartless before it could try and fire at her again. The humanoids unleashed another barrage while she was still airborne; Kairi let her Waterga well around her, only to find the shots piercing through her magic and striking her all the same, and the magic fizzled out as she was knocked into the building. Another wheeled one soared up towards her, and Kairi forced herself aside before it could try and strike, leaving it skidding against the wall and unintentionally approaching one of the humanoids; when it tried to swing its arms at her, Kairi reflexively brought her Keyblade into its body, finishing it off - and loosing another burst of electricity that ripped through her body as it was absorbed back into San Fransokyo's power grid.

The wheeled one rushed at her again - and was struck by a blast of light.

Kairi turned the way it had come - Big Hero 6 had found her, sans one Baymax. Wasabi was standing there with his laser hands raised; Go Go quickly zipped forward, grabbing Kairi before she had a chance to object and carrying her out of melee range. The humanoids started to fire their way again, but Honey Lemon threw a few chemballs between them and the Heartless, forming a thick wall of pink gunk against which their shots collided, and Fred quickly covered in in a layer of ice as reinforcement as Kairi was set down.

"You alright?" Hiro asked.

"I'm fine," Kairi insisted.

"You are suffering from - electrical stimulation - blunt force trauma - and - mild exhaustion," Baymax observed.

"I said I'm fine," Kairi protested. "Look, those are the Heartless that sucked up the city's power. But you can't take them down at close range - when they perish, they let out all the power at once."

"Kinda figured when Baymax said 'electric'," Fred observed. "Don't worry, we got this!"

He leapt over the defensive wall, flame spewing from his suit's maw; Go Go dashed around one side, hurling her discs at the Heartless, and Wasabi and Honey Lemon took the other, chemballs and laser blasts flying. Hiro quickly detached one of Baymax's rocket fists, whereupon he reached forward; from one finger emerged a spray that coated Kairi's arm with slow motions, prompting her to ask, "What are you doing?"

"This spray is designed to - soothe wounds - and - reduce swelling," Baymax explained, moving his hand to her other arm.

The sound of voltage surging out behind the defensive wall told Kairi the others were making short work of the Heartless; the city was starting to light back up. "Are they-"

"Don't worry," Hiro insisted. "Our suits are insulated, waterproof, and flame-retardant. The electricity won't hurt us." Baymax finished spraying Kairi's arms and knelt to apply the spray to her legs. "Look, Kairi-"

A blast slammed into the wall, shattering it and leaving Kairi, Hiro, and Baymax exposed. The humanoids and the wheeled ones had been taken out, but the turret was still standing - and had its cannon aimed straight at Kairi.

"Oh no."

The cannon began to charge; Kairi quickly leapt aside, yelling, "Punch it!" Baymax raised his still-equipped fist, the rockets firing and propelling it forward; the Heartless fired at much the same time, and blast and fist collided in the center, the explosion sending Baymax's gauntlet into the ground, mangled.

Destiny's Embrace quickly appeared in Kairi's grip, and she hurled a Pearl at the Heartless before it could adjust its aim; Honey Lemon threw a chemball at its cannon, pinning it to the ground, and Wasabi began to fire at it from the side. Go Go dashed towards the nearest building, the discs on her feet glowing as she raced a moment up it's side; then she spun around, hurling her discs down at the turret, and Fred began to spew ice at it from where she had been standing.

Hiro quickly re-equipped Baymax's other hand; then Baymax soared upward, so that the pinning of its cannon wouldn't be in the path of his punch as he fired his other arm.

The punch finished it off; the electricity the Heartless had stolen surged out, in much greater quantity than that of the smaller Heartless, and its heart soared off as San Fransokyo reached the illumination it had possessed before.

Kairi breathed a sigh of relief, slumping to the ground as her Keyblade vanished. "Ow," she murmured.

Baymax landed as Hiro stepped towards the damaged gauntlet. "That's gonna need some serious repairs," he observed. "Come on, let's head back."

* * *

By the time the sun had risen on San Fransokyo, Kairi had to admit that Baymax's healthcare protocols left her feeling a  _lot_ better than a rushed dose of Cure magic did. The Heartless levels had definitively fallen, as well, and as noon approached, Kairi made to bid Big Hero 6 farewell.

"Kairi, wait," Hiro insisted, before she could leave the garage. "Take this with you."

He handed Kairi the visor she had been wearing. "What for?"

"Sora left it behind, last time," Hiro admitted. "I was hoping you could give it to him?"

That unknowing request struck Kairi with a fierce pang of sorrow. The entire team noticed when her expression fell; she glanced down at the visor, realizing only now that the red and black had been designed to match the outfit Sora had been wearing on his last journey. "...Yeah," she murmured. "Yeah, I can do that."

"Your - neurotransmitter levels - are - falling," Baymax observed.

Kairi raised her gaze to him - one of him, rather, as both units were operable and cooperating again. "My what are what?"

"It means you're sad," Wasabi translated.

Hiro's gaze fell to the visor. "...Sora?"

"...Yeah." Kairi held the device to her chest. "But... it's alright."

"Those who suffer loss require support from - friends - and - loved ones," Baymax proclaimed.

"Baymax is right," Honey Lemon agreed. "You shouldn't be trying to cope with that by yourself."

Kairi shook her head. "I'm not. Not really. That's..." A small smile rose on her face. "That's actually why I'm travelling."

Hiro was surprised. "What?"

"You've  _met_ Sora," Kairi proclaimed. "You've fought at his side. And be honest with me - you're his friends, right?"

Every member of the team nodded in concession.

"That's why I'm on this journey," Kairi insisted. "Sora's heart grew stronger with each encounter, and found a home in all the friends he's made - and he's made so many friends, in so many places." She closed her eyes. "I'm trying to meet as many of them as I can. I want to see the way a meeting with him has bettered lives. To touch the hearts he's touched."

Hiro nodded. "Best of luck, then."

"Appreciate it," Kairi agreed.

She took a few steps out of the garage; then a smile rose on her face, and she waved back. "I'll give Keyblade Hero 3 your regards."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> San Fransokyo is freaking huge. I really should have written this one coming directly off of gameplay instead of trying to take reference from the movie. Also, I'm -negatively- versed in healthcare protocol, so if anything Baymax said in this chapter is inaccurate, blame me... but keep it to yourself. I don't have the patience to rewrite this with.


	8. Radiance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since Chapter 3 at least, every time I've had an even number of kudos, exactly half of them came from AO3 users and the other half came from guests. I'm just giggling at the symmetry.
> 
> Feel like this goes without saying, but just in case: Kairi spends a good bit more time between worlds than I have the patience to write.

_Dear Sora,_  
_I've been to a good few worlds now, and seen the way you've touched the hearts of the people in each. I can't find the words to describe how amazed I am at how you've been able to make so many friends, each so different than the last._  
_I know your journeys have each been different from the last. But I'm glad to see that the reason you were on each journey didn't changed the way you acted to the people you met on them. No matter whether they met you back when the islands were lost, or after you'd quested through the Sleeping Worlds, they remember you as the same kind boy I knew - the one who could make friends with anyone who didn't immediately consider him their enemy._  
_And I'm sure that whatever journey you're on now, in the realm beyond our reach, you still haven't changed._  
_Love, Kairi_

A tear struck the page as Kairi closed her notepad, tucking it into the pack against the mast and drawing out a couple cookies. She knew that she should really try and get some sleep between worlds; she'd made sure to  **rest** , as far as not exerting her body for too long, but the only real  **sleep** she'd gotten had been her brief doze in Twilight Town. Yet something about sailing on the Ocean Between made slumbering easier said than done; the sea of stardust and the endless night sky gave her comfort, but she could not find herself relaxed enough to sleep while she was drifting in the emptiness.

With a sigh, she leaned back against the mast, closing her eyes. Part of it, she suspected, was the memories that she associated with  _endless_ night skies. Last time she had been in a world that saw no daylight, it had been the Organization's world - where their Kingdom Hearts, crafted from Heartless slain by the Keyblade, illuminated the dark skies. Her cell in the World That Never Was had been within eyesight of a window, and Kingdom Hearts had been visible therein, and that unnatural moon had unsettled her even before she knew of its significance. The time before that, she had been in Traverse Town - Sora, Donald, and Goofy's  **immediate** destination after they had recovered Kairi from Hollow Bastion - and the terrors that had chased them out of that unholy place had kept her wide awake until the worlds were restored, and she had been taken back to the Destiny Islands.

Light shone before her; enough that Kairi picked it up even with her eyes closed, and she slowly opened them as a world rose up before her.

* * *

Once again did Kairi find herself run aground with plentiful water in sight, although in fairness it wasn't exactly a port this time. When her vision cleared, she was moored on solid ground before a decorative fountain; the area around her seemed to be a garden of sort, littered with flowers. On the other side of the fountain was a great stone wall - and behind that wall, she could safely assume, was the base of the massive castle that overlooked the city.

With gears turning upon its face.

Kairi gasped in astonishment, her hands going up to her mouth as she realized what she was looking at. "Is this... Hollow Bastion...?"

"Radiant Garden, actually."

The soft voice responding to her from nearby drew Kairi to turn around. Standing there was a girl a couple years older than she was, dressed in dark grey and black with tan boots; a white-lined black headband rested across her head to hold back her black hair, a fingerless black glove rested on her left hand, a white wristband rested on her right arm, and an oversized shuriken was propped over her back. Her silvery-blue eyes had a devilish twinkle in them, and as soon as she had the islander's attention, she stepped forward. "Nice to see you again, Kairi."

"H-Hi," Kairi stuttered, surprised to see a familiar face here. "Um, Yuffie, right?"

"Has it really been that long?" Yuffie asked. "Time flies when you're rebuilding a world."

Her words caught Kairi by surprise. "Rebuilding a-"

Yuffie aimed a finger on her free hand at the castle. " _That's_ Hollow Bastion."

It took a moment for the weight of her words to register; when it did, Kairi's heart sank. "No..."

"Yeah," Yuffie sighed. "Walk with me?"

The two started around the fountain. "From what Ansem _the Wise_  has been telling us," she mused, "Maleficent learned how to make the Heartless work for her, had them eat her own world, and showed up... pretty much right after his apprentice booted him to the dark realm, took his name, and turned his buddies into Nobodies. Cid piled me, Aerith, and Leon into a Gummi Ship, and we flew off while the Heartless were eating the town from the outside in. Ended up in Traverse Town. Thought the world went they way of your islands - but, that was us jumping to conclusions. The castle was still around. With me being so young at the time and the others fighting Heartless since their teens, we barely remembered anything else."

"So how did this happen?" Kairi asked, aiming a hand around the garden as they started into a tunnel in the castle wall.

"With a metric frickton of blood, sweat, and tears," Yuffie replied. "After Sora finished things up with the guy who's  _not_ Ansem, and Gummi Ships stopped working for mundane folks who don't have Keyblades, we got to work restoring the world. A year later, we had enough of a working city that you could get a  _view_ of the castle - but it wasn't much. And it wasn't the Radiant Garden it used to be."

They were stepping out into a wide-open square that looked to be the middle of the city; Kairi could see a clear path to the castle from here. "You mean this is the Radiant Garden it used to be?"

"Yep," Yuffie confirmed. "Tron gave us a look at the past, and that's when the construction effort really took off."

"Who's Tron?"

"Security program who fought with Sora in Ansem's computer.

"Okay, what?"

Yuffie laughed. "Long story that doesn't make a whole lot of sense," she admitted. "Anyways, one Organization massacre later courtesy of the Key bearer and his trusty friends, a few of Ansem's apprentices were back. That's when construction  _really_ took off. Turns out, being a Nobody for a decade teaches you a lot; Dilan, Aeleus, and Ienzo really fired off the fix-up. Only thing we were missing was water by the time Riku and the King swung by looking for leads on some chick named Terra."

"Terra is a guy," Kairi corrected.

A scuffling in the square drew their attention around them; Shadows were rising up from the floor around them. Destiny's Embrace appeared in Kairi's grip, and Yuffie swung her shuriken off her shoulder. "Hold that thought."

She hurled her shuriken forward, and Kairi charged at the Heartless with Keyblade at the ready. A swarm of Shadows posed next to no threat, though they were a bit more numerous than Kairi would have liked, and in short order the two girls were alone in the square again; Kairi let her Keyblade disappear as Yuffie slung her shuriken over her arm again. "Alright, where were we?"

"Riku and the King looking for a  _guy_ named Terra," Kairi recalled.

"Right." Yuffie started to walk again, prompting Kairi to follow. "So, they came up blank, and took off after a stop at the castle with Ienzo. A while after that, we got some reports about a couple of guys in black coats."

Kairi's face fell. "Oh no-"

Yuffie raised a finger to interrupt her. "And then, a little bit later, Ienzo is so excited we can hear him from outside the castle. Krackaboom, Ansem the Wise is back in the Garden! And Ienzo's got a sciency new mannequin thing, but that's not important."

"Sciency new manne- the replicas!" Kairi realized. "That was  _very_ important, thanks."

"Sorry?" Yuffie sounded like she was confused as to whether or not Kairi was expecting an apology. "Anyways, with Ansem back, Radiant Garden's been flourishing. Haven't seen any Keyblades since, though. Last hint I got was a Gummi Ship swinging by the square, but it was taking off again by the time I was there."

Kairi sighed, her steps coming to a stop as they arrived at a somewhat leafier garden. "Well, there's a good reason for that," she admitted. "Everyone with a Keyblade has a lot of lost time to make up for. Roxas, Xion, and Axel have been remaking friends in Twilight Town, Terra, Ventus, and Aqua are catching up after ten years in various states of darkness, King Mickey's finally got a chance to be at home again, and me and Riku..." She breathed a heavy sigh.

Yuffie turned to her. "And Sora?"

A glare rose on Kairi's face as she met her gaze.

Fright took hold of Yuffie; her grip on her shuriken faltered, causing it to impale in the ground behind her. "...No."

"Yeah." Kairi started towards the castle again.

"No, wait," Yuffie protested, "how did that even-"

"It was him or me," Kairi insisted. "And he picked me."

Her words silenced the ninja, who found herself struck still as Kairi continued through the garden.

* * *

In front of the castle, Kairi found another mildly familiar face - courtesy of the very brief time for which she had last seen its owner. A man in a labcoat of blue so pale as to be nearly white, with a red scarf of sorts draped over his shoulder, was making his way into the castle; his blonde hair was slicked back, long enough to vanish beneath his scarf. He seemed to hear Kairi's footsteps, turning towards them - and revealing a pale face with orange eyes and a goatee.

"Ah." The man stepped forward as she approached him. "Kairi, was it?"

"...Ansem the Wise," Kairi returned. "A pleasure to finally meet you on leisurely terms."

"Indeed," Ansem conceded. "Riku called and told Ienzo of your journey, and Ienzo passed it on to the rest of us." He caught his hands behind his back. "Does anything in particular bring you to the castle?"

"Um..." Kairi grew awkward all of a sudden. "Well... it's kind of stupid."

Ansem insisted. "Your methods are your own," he insisted. "I'll not mock you for your intentions."

Kairi sighed. "I... kind of wanted to see what the castle was like," she admitted. "I mean, last I saw it, the castle was the only thing  _in_ this world. We called the world 'Hollow Bastion', and those gears up there were framed in the Heartless' emblem. This place was... it was a mess of lifts and balconies, and looked like it was meant to give the Heartless easy prey."

"And you would like to see how much of that was part of its original design," Ansem observed, "and how much was simply renovations by its previous tenant."

"Pretty much," Kairi confirmed.

"Very well," Ansem mused. "Come in."

That caught Kairi off-guard. "Seriously?"

"Quite," Ansem assured her. "I'll inform the others that you are to be given free reign - least so much as you do not put yourself at risk."

Kairi stepped after him. "How exactly would I be putting myself at risk, walking through the halls?"

Ansem turned to her with a light chuckle. "Tell me you do not believe all science to simply be papers and computers," he requested.

"...Point."

* * *

The bad news was that Kairi got  _lost_ a couple times as she walked her way through the castle; she ended up meeting Aeleus, Dilan, Even, and Ienzo as she struggled to find so much as the stairs. The good news was that it was because she  _didn't recognize much_ ; the design of the castle was much more benign than it had been under Maleficent's reign, such that Kairi doubted whether it even deserved to be called 'Hollow Bastion' like this. When she finally found what had once been a most threatening castle chapel, she found it decorated much more pleasantly - and with less thorns - and the path to what had once been the Grand Hall, where the old princesses of heart had been held captive, was entirely absent its steaming mess of pipes and Heartless'-emblem-shaped rift.

A smile rose on Kairi's face as she reached the stage where the Keyhole to the darkness had once laid. "Never thought I'd  _enjoy_ seeing a lack of nostalgia," she admitted.

Her expression fell when she saw something lying on the center of the stage - a strange, circular shape. Confused, she stepped towards it; it appeared to be a  _disc_ , though on closer inspection it seemed to be contained in something; an uncertain Kairi picked it up, looking over it and finding it covered in strange lines.

"What is this...?"

* * *

"Most concerning..."

Ansem and Even had been in the computer lab when Kairi had arrived with the disc in hand, and the three were regarding it uncertainly. "You said you found this in the Grand Hall?" Ansem asked.

"Yes," Kairi confirmed. "Do you have any idea what it's for?"

"I don't recognize it," Ansem admitted. "Even?"

"No, sir," Even admitted. "I'd be wary about trying to engage that on our system..."

_"Pardon, Users."_

The voice echoing from around them had Kairi starting, her Keyblade appearing in her hands. "Who said that!?"

Ansem quickly raised a warning hand towards her. "Calm down," he insisted. "It's just Tron."

"T-Tron?" Kairi glanced around. "Wh-Where is-?"

A laughter sounded in that same voice.  _"Another User without much computer expertise?"_ he mused.  _"Should I assume you're a friend of Sora?"_

Kairi blinked. "You know- Oh! Yuffie mentioned you. You fought with Sora? How?"

 _"There's a digitizer in the lab that allows me to transport Users within the computer's mainframe,"_ Tron explained.  _"Sora, Donald, and Goofy triggered it during the reign of the previous Master Control Program. They helped me take control of the system, turning it into a free system for the Users."_

A small smile rose on Kairi's face. "That sounds like Sora," she admitted, letting her Keyblade vanish.

Ansem turned to the main display. "Tron," he asked, "did you have an idea what this disc might be for?"

 _"Yes, sir,"_ Tron confirmed.  _"There's a function I found some time ago, designated 'ANOTHER', that is locked with an external key. If the disc was found in the castle, it's possible that it's the key in question."_

"Are you sure it would be wise to risk it?" Even argued.

 _"I'm well-equipped to fend off any malware the disc might possess,"_ Tron assured him.

"Very well," Ansem conceded. "Let's see what it holds." He slipped the disc into a slot near the display.

After a long moment, Tron spoke again;  _"This is definitely the same executable. But it seems to be password-protected."_ Something popped up on the screen; a circular design, with six boxes around it.  _"There don't appear to be any available hints as to the nature of the passwords in question."_

"Six passwords?" Even set a hand on his chin. "Is the order relevant?"

_"I would assume so."_

Ansem groaned. "Wonderful."

Kairi thought for a moment. "Hey, Tron? Are there... Is there any sign that this... function... has been activated before? Maybe something about the disc having been entered in the past?"

 _"Just a moment,"_ Tron prompted.  _"...Yep, there's definitely an indication of this disc having been used before."_

"Any clues as to what might've been involved with it?" Kairi asked.

 _"There's a video file from a security camera, with a timestamp close to the most recent use."_  Tron mused.  _"But the camera in question is currently offline. The footage seems to indicate it was destroyed then."_

"Play it," Ansem insisted. "Any clue could be of use."

 _"Yes, sir,"_ Tron replied.  _"Upper right."_

Everyone's attention was drawn to the monitor he had specified. The footage was focused on the monitor; then it shifted abruptly, and Kairi started when she saw someone in a black cloak stepping into the lab.

"The Organization," Kairi muttered. "But... was that the old one, or the new one?"

"Tron," Even asked, "you said Sora was involved with your liberation of the system, yes? Was that before or after you first made contact with Ienzo?"

 _"Before,"_ Tron replied.

"And this file, is it dated near to that point?"

 _"The timestamp is well before Sora, Donald, and Goofy were first imported,"_ Tron replied.

Kairi's gaze fell. "That'll be the old Organization, then. And with that being in here..." She raised her gaze. "Even, you and the others were founding members with Xemnas, right?"

Even turned to her, surprised. "You believe the passwords to correspond to the founding members of the Organization? It cannot be that simple."

Ansem shook his head. "Better to make a guess than attempt to brute-force it," he insisted. Stepping towards the keyboard; "What were your Nobodies' names, in order?"

"Xemnas, Xigbar, Xaldin, Vexen, Lexaeus, Zexion," Even replied.

Six characters in the first box, and then a line connected it to the circle; six in the second, and another line. Six in the third, five in the fourth, seven in the fifth, and six in the sixth; then Ansem tapped a different key, and the display vanished.

 _[INCORRECT PASSWORD(S)]_ appeared on the screen, and it brought back to the input screen.

Even sighed. "I should have known it wouldn't be so simple."

 _"All the passwords were designated incorrect,"_  Tron informed them, _"but I'm seeing a significant accuracy rating."_

Kairi hummed. "What about your names as complete people?" she suggested.

"If those were accurate," Even mused, "then it would have been after Xehanort took Your Lordship's name as his own."

"Then... Ansem, Braig, Dilan, Even, Aeleus, Ienzo..." Once the six slots were filled, Ansem tapped the confirmation key again.

_[INCORRECT PASSWORD(S)]_

"Tron?" Kairi sighed.

 _"Five out of six correct,"_ Tron informed them.  _"The one incorrect had a lower accuracy rating than before."_

"....Xehanort's real name, then?" Kairi offered.

Ansem began typing. "Xehanort, Braig, Dilan, Even, Aeleus, Ienzo..."

_[SYSTEM START]_

"There we go!" Kairi cheered.

"I cannot believe that worked," Even muttered.

 _"Running executable,"_ Tron proclaimed.  _"Disc ejecting."_  He'd barely finished that sentence before the disc emerged from the slot. _"I'm detecting activity in the region designated 'Heartless Manufactory'."_

Everyone in the lab started. "What!?"

 _"The associated functions aren't running,"_ Tron insisted.  _"It's a structural change."_

Ansem's gaze fell. "Wait, that region is..."

"Your Lordship?" The voice from nearby drew their attention; Ienzo was stepping into the lab. "Oh, Kairi."

"Ienzo," Kairi asked, "what's in the Heartless Manufactory?"

"Down there?" Ienzo's gaze narrowed. "Beyond the creation devices..." His gaze widened. "Wait, the Chamber of-"

A roar of machinery drew everyone's gaze over the ridge of the computer, where a window gave them a view of the manufactory. Something was opening up - a hidden passage, in which a walkway materialized once it was wide enough to hold five people side-by-side.

A sense of dread took Kairi in an instant. "What is that?"

"That," Ansem mused, his voice heavy, "is the facility I created to enable Xehanort's experiments with the heart - before we realized it was creating Heartless. The subjects of the experiments were once held down there."

There was a moment of quiet; then Kairi raised her hand, and Destiny's Embrace appeared in it. "I'm going to take a look."

Ienzo turned to her in surprise. "On your own?"

"Well, I know how to deal with Heartless," Kairi insisted. "And if it closes behind me, someone's gotta open it again. Tron can't put the disc back in himself."

"We can't speak to you down there," Even reprimanded.

Kairi drew out Sora's Gummiphone. "You've still got one of these, haven't you?" she asked.

Ansem turned to Ienzo, who reached into his pocket and drew out a Gummiphone. "Yes, I do," he confirmed.

"Call me, and I'll keep you on the line," Kairi mused. "It'll work across worlds, I think it'll work underground."

She stepped through the door leading to the manufactory elevator, and with a sigh, Ienzo tapped through the call screen.

The Gummiphone rang for a moment... and then a blonde-framed face appeared on it.  _"Ienzo! Is something wrong?"_

"What? Naminé?" Ienzo glanced up. "But-"

Naminé rolled her eyes.  _"Were you trying to call Kairi? She's got **Sora** 's Gummiphone. Riku was supposed to tell you guys."_

"Oh..." Ienzo scratched the back of his head. "Actually, I think he did...

With a sigh, Naminé shook her head. " _Don't call me again unless something big comes up,"_ she insisted; and she hung up immediately.

* * *

"How far down does this go?"

The opening to the facility had indeed closed behind Kairi once she had gotten down the ramp, and just beyond that was a spiral slope that led down... and down... and down. Kairi was convinced if the slope had been steep enough to require stairs, it wouldn't have taken so long. "If I could see the bottom, I'd just jump the railing and Aero my fall when I got close to the floor."

 _"I was the one who made the request,"_ Ienzo confessed,  _"on Xehanort's behalf. He instructed me to have His Lordship construct it as deep as he was able, so as to provide plenty of reaction time if something should go wrong. In hindsight, I feel it was also to give a degree of secrecy once the experiments were ordered to be halted."_

"Well, the reaction time was certainly a valid point," Kairi admitted. "You could fight a Darkside in here and have room to attack it from above."

Eventually, she reached the base of the slope; a sliding door opened for her when she arrived, and the sudden change from dark hues to bright white at Kairi wincing. "Okay, that's not cool." Stepping inside, she quickly realized the walls were lined with doors that bore barred windows and chains hanging across their surface. "What the- Are these... cells?"

 _"The subjects were kept imprisoned after being experimented upon,"_ Even confirmed,  _"under the pretext of possibly containing any involuntary actions - such as offensive retaliation."_ He had an apologetic tone in his voice.

Kairi shuddered. "Xehanort never did things by halves, did he."

 _"At the far end,"_ Ienzo stated,  _"you should see a different sort of door. That is the Chamber of Repose. Only Xehanort ever set foot in there. If there is anything that brings threat to us, it'll be found in that room."_

The door he specified was indeed there; as Kairi approached it, a commotion on the other end revealed that Aeleus and Dilan had arrived in the lab. The door opened as she approached it - revealing a darker room with walls covered in the Organization's emblem, each with a chain pattern trailing down to the floor and leading to the center of the room. Sitting there was a chair with spikes emerging out of the back.

 _"What do you see?"_ Aeleus asked.

"A throne," Kairi replied, stepping towards it. "With its back to the door." She made to step around it. "And there's something in front of- Ah!"

_"What is it?!"_

There was a humanoid figure lying before the throne, in hues of blue - and impaled at its side was a familiar weapon. "There's... a Keyblade here," Kairi murmured. Then, realizing that the figure was in pieces; "And some kind of... blue armour."

 _"Armour?"_ Ansem mused.  _"Why does that sound familiar..."_

 _"Kairi,"_ Dilan requested,  _"turn the display towards it."_ Then, when Kairi did as requested; _"I know those items_. _"_  Kairi turned the Gummiphone back as he explained;  _"When we found Xehanort unconscious in the town square, that armour and weapon were lying with him. Braig insisted I collect them and_ _take them with us when we brought him to the castle."_

"These were with him?" Kairi remembered what Riku had told her about his and the King's search for the three missing Keyblade wielders. "Aqua sacrificed herself to save Terra... and Xehanort was found where the fight took place. These must be Aqua's."

 _"What do you intend to do with them?"_ Ienzo asked.

Kairi lowered the Gummiphone. "Well, as long as I'm travelling the worlds, I might as well take them back to her." She reached for the Keyblade, drawing it from the floor. "I seem to recall she mentioned having her old Master's Keyblade, maybe she'd like her own back."

* * *

With some difficulty, Kairi managed to get all the armour and the Keyblade in her hands... only to immediately decide against carrying it loosely in her hands  _all the way back up the slope_. Aeleus brought her a large sack, and with her legs burning, she stepped out of the castle with said bag in one hand and Aqua's Keyblade in the other.

She was halfway across the area before the doors when Heartless began to appear around her - just Shadows, once again, but still Heartless all the same. With a groan, Kairi realized that the cargo she had with her meant she couldn't exactly use her normal fighting style; after a moment's deliberation, she let Aqua's Keyblade disappear, Destiny's Embrace appearing to take its place as she swept the weapon down at her side.

Pain.

Kairi's grip on the bag of armour faltered as she reached for her forehead with a gasp. One Shadow leapt, meaning to strike at her head, and in a panic she brought her Keyblade into an overhand swing, striking through it and leaving it splitting into smoke. Another came up to one side, and she moved her weapon into an outward swing; a third tried to approach her, but she twisted into a spin to cleave it through.

The pain intensified, and images flashed through her mind.

_Radiant Garden, and a hand full of flowers._

_Sleek blue creatures that she now recognized as Unversed._

_A woman in blue, fighting with a weapon she could identify as a Keyblade._

Her eyes opened as the remaining Shadows lunged at her from all sides.

She swung her Keyblade back, and a magic barrier appeared around her, stopping their blows in place.

Then she thrust her Keyblade skyward, and fragments of the barrier flew out, shattering the Heartless around her.

Kairi's breath was heavy as she lowered her weapon.  _I... remember..._ Destiny's Embrace vanished in her hand, and Aqua's Keyblade appeared to take its place.  _It was here... Aqua saved me here._

Silence for a long moment; then Kairi knelt down, seizing the bag of Aqua's armour again and continuing her way through Radiant Garden.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Turns out, Draco knows two of THE WORST people to go to a serious movie with. We only discovered that the other day.
> 
> So, I've ultimately decided not to write the Reapers' streets less out of a lack of audacity and more out of a lack of ability. I have no idea how to put Kairi in Shibuya in a position where she can fight Heartless and Neku can still fight with her. That's the new biggest thing I'm looking forward to in the next game.


	9. Deliverance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Draco gets so annoyed about Keyblade Armour, it's ridiculous. Like, when Terra and Aqua lose their armour in Birth By Sleep, they've still got the same scraps as before. Draco's convinced that the Lingering Will should be missing an arm. The activator bits doesn't even look the same between armour active and armour gone, why would you obsess over that? I mean, the boots look the same, but he gave that a pass because humans tend to look each other in the face.

"What does this stuff even do?"

During the final battle at the Keyblade Graveyard, Xehanort - in Terra's body - had found his path obstructed by a suit of armour that Ventus and Aqua had identified as having belonged to Terra. From their appearance, Kairi had thought the plates heavy, defensive, and best suited to someone whose fighting style emphasized strength over mobility - a fighting style that Terra's armour had indeed showcased.

However, Aqua's armour seemed to be of much the same build. Yet without the preoccupation of being faced with a massive climb and asking  _Dude, why?_ to make everything seem heavier than it was, Kairi discovered that the plates were actually quite light. The joins offered plenty of flexibility, and briefly slipping her hand into one glove revealed that the movement of her fingers was entirely unrestricted.

With a sigh, Kairi pulled it off, setting it back into the bag. "Old Keyblade Master stuff," she murmured. "I've got no idea what that's for."

A ring from Sora's Gummiphone distracted her; she reached into her pocket, drawing out the device and tapping at the screen to answer it. A face framed with black hair appeared, cheerfully greeting, _"Hi, Kairi!"_

"Xion," Kairi returned. "Does Axel know you have his Gummiphone?"

 _"Kinda,"_ Xion admitted.

"What do you mean, 'kinda'?" Kairi accused.

Xion giggled. _"He asked me to hold onto it while he gave Struggle a try. Didn't want to risk getting it knocked out of his pocket. Turns out, a fighting style that revolves around slinging your Keyblade around by the guard means you can't fight with a normal sword."_

"Oh, ow," Kairi groaned. She'd seen a couple Struggles when she had ended up in Twilight Town during the first Organization's reign; foam bats with plastic handles were still capable of hurting, and she pitied Lea for his combat attempt. "And, what, he never asked for it back?"

 _"Nope,"_ Xion confirmed.  _"Pence and Olette had a bet going on about whether Axel or Hayner would knock more orbs off. Pence won on the technicality that Axel knocking his **own** orbs off because he was throwing his Struggle Bat like a moron still technically counts as Axel knocking orbs off."_

Kairi laughed. "Jeez, you guys don't pull your punches, do you?"

 _"Not a chance,"_ Xion admitted.  _"So, how's your journey going?"_

"Well, I found something in Radiant Garden," Kairi observed, "and I'm pretty sure it belongs to Aqua. Don't suppose you knew about Xemnas' secret lab?"

Xion gave her a look.  _"Come on, Kairi,"_ she objected.  _"Me and Roxas were the Keyblade wielders who came from Sora. The Organization tried to keep us in the dark from the day Roxas showed up until the day he left. I had to access Saïx's computer just to learn the word 'replica'."_

"Point," Kairi conceded.

A yell from someone on Xion's end drew her attention.  _"Oh, that's Roxas. I'd better get going. See you!"_

"Bye."

Xion hung up, and Kairi lowered her device. "Alright," she sighed. "First things first. I've gotta deliver Aqua's stuff."

A light shone before her, telling her that her destination was approaching.

* * *

Once more did the raft find itself moored upon a mountain. This was a much lovelier mountain than Olympus, however, and it overlooked a much more pleasant view, at least in Kairi's eyes. In the distance was a castle of beautiful design - a broader structure in the middle, with four short towers that seemed to be suspended on  _arms_ of the central one - and before it was a courtyard, from which a path extended towards her. The skies were starry, but Kairi could see, over the horizon, a receding glow that told her the sun had only just set on this world.

A tired yawn escaped Kairi as she considered approaching the castle. _A world with a proper day-night cycle? Aqua and the others will be getting to bed._ She lay herself down on the raft.  _I should... probably do the same._

Her eyes closed as the tire of so many worlds caught up to her - and, unbeknowst to her, someone watched as she fell asleep. A short, furred figure in bright grey, adorned in black stripes; its head was nearly the size of its body, and its arms and legs rather diminutive in comparison. From its back hung a cape, gold on the outer surface and blue on the interior; from around its neck, a pink purse marked with a white star rested upon its chest. Its narrow blue eyes regarded Kairi for a moment; then it retreated down the mountain path.

A good hour later (small beings with short legs don't make good time), the being had arrived at the courtyard before the castle of the Land of Departure. He paused for a moment at the base of the steps to catch his breath; then he hopped his way up, pushing a door open to give him passage and then pushing it closed once he was inside.

* * *

"Kairi?"

"Kairi, wake up."

With a tired groan, opened her eyes. The sun had risen over the mountain where her raft was moored; standing before her were three pairs of armoured feet, and letting her gaze rise up their bodies revealed three faces with hair in brown, blonde, and blue.

"Hm...?" For a moment, the last dredges of sleep left Kairi unable to identify the people before her; then her vision cleared, and she shot upright. "Oh!"

Ventus and Aqua shared a bout of laughter as Terra shook his head. "Falling asleep on the summit?" he asked. "On a raft, even? There are warmer locales."

Kairi shook her head. "Got here in the middle of the night," she murmured. Stretching with a light yawn; "Didn't... think you'd appreciate someone barging in unannounced."

"You know, it didn't  _have_ to be unannounced," Ventus reminded her, drawing out his Gummiphone. "We wouldn't have minded if you'd given one of us a call."

A smile rose on Kairi's face. "Well... I wanted to surprise you." She got to her feet, grabbing the sack aboard her raft and dragging it off the side. "Aqua... I think these are yours."

She seized the bottom of the bag and upturned it - and all three of the Keyblade wielders before her were astonished as the silvery-blue plates tumbled out.

Joy rose in Aqua's face as she knelt, picking up the helmet as though worried it wasn't there. "My armour...!" She raised her gaze as Kairi held out her hand; the weapon she'd found alongside the plates appeared in it, earning a still broader smile from the Master. "My Keyblade! Kairi, thank you so much!"

Kairi turned the Keyblade in hand, holding it by the guard as she held it out to Aqua; the Master accepted it gladly, holding it tenderly in hand as though for the first time. "Hey, it's yours," the islander insisted. "I couldn't just take it for myself."

Aqua let her free hand curl around the shaft of the Keyblade. "Where did you find this?"

"Radiant Garden," Kairi replied. "In Xehanort's private room."

" _Ew!_ " Aqua peeled her hand off the shaft as though stung.

"Not that kind of private!" Kairi insisted, realizing how that sounded. "It was a room at the end of a hall full of prison cells, underneath a Heartless manufactory in the castle."

Terra's expression change. "Was... there a throne in there?"

Kairi raised her gaze to him. "How'd you guess?"

"I... think I saw that," Terra muttered. He raised a hand to his temple. "Xehanort was using me to try and find Ven while he was sleeping. I think... that room had something to do with it."

Ventus turned to him. "How would Aqua's stuff help him find me?"

"He was talking to me," Aqua replied, getting to her feet. "While I was in the Realm of Darkness. He tried to get me to tell him where you were. I guess talking to this stuff was... just a trance of sorts he used to try and exploit our connection."

Kairi's gaze fell. "A shame we didn't find it sooner," she murmured.

With a chuckle, Ventus shook his head. "I spent those years in peaceful dreaming," he assured her. "Xehanort having this stuff didn't do him any good."

"Glad to hear it," Kairi conceded. Then, to Aqua; "So, you want a hand getting this back-"

"Oh, no," Aqua insisted with a light giggle. "That won't be necessary."

She raised the hand not holding her Keyblade towards the scattered armour - and to Kairi's surprise, a powerful light shone from the plates. When it faded, the armour was gone - and the strips of metal on her upper arms, which Kairi had assumed to have no purpose but holding up Aqua's detached sleeves, were glowing with a brief light that was slowly receding. "Wait, what just...?"

Aqua had a grin on her face as she got to her feet. "Watch this."

Her hand swept up to the strip on her right arm; the fingertips brushed against the circular pattern at its peak, and a pattern of light shone from it briefly before she closed her hand over it and that same light shone over her. When it faded, the armour covered Aqua's body; it fit her flawlessly, and when she drew her Keyblade once again, it almost seemed like one part with the armour.

"No way," Kairi gasped. "That's... amazing. Wait," she realized, turning to Terra, "then that thing in the Graveyard-?"

With a smirk, Terra raised a fist and pounded it against his shoulder plate. A similar light washed over him - and once it faded out, she would have sworn Terra was gone. In his place was the same suit of armour that had fended off Xehanort in Terra's body; with a rush of electrical-looking light from his hand, the double-edged Keyblade it had carried appeared in his grip.

A smile was wide on Kairi's face as she turned to Ventus, who was grinning broadly. "You got one?"

Ventus snapped his fingers before bringing his hand across to slap his own shoulder plate briefly. A third rush of light consumed him; once it faded out, he, too, was covered in armour. His was a silver-gold-and-black ensemble that was a good deal more closely-fit than Aqua's or Terra's, which made sense given Ven's speed inclinations; the hues were also slightly different from his Keyblade's, as evident when he drew it, but it wasn't exactly a  _contrast_ either.

Kairi laughed in amazement. "You guys look like the biggest freaking  **knights** in the worlds," she exclaimed.

"Yeah," Ventus admitted, light parting around him as he let the armour vanish. "I was pretty hyped the first time I saw it, too."

Terra and Aqua did the same, and Kairi's gaze fell. "So, um, dumb question," she prompted. "What does that stuff  _do?_ " I mean, it doesn't seem heavy enough to really...  _protect_."

"It doesn't," Terra admitted. "Not from blows, anyways."

"What's the outfit do?" Ventus countered, aiming a finger at Kairi.

"Does someone's everyday outfit really have to do anything?" she asked. "Well, I mean... when Master Yen Sid gave the King and Riku their outfits, he said it was meant to protect them in the Realm of Darkness. Maybe this is the same?"

Aqua nodded. "Protection from the darkness is exactly what our armour does," she explained. "Before the Heartless first showed up, Gummi Blocks - and Gummi Ships - weren't a thing. Keyblade wielders had to use different travel methods. The Master's method involved pathways along the realm between - paths that were a little closer to the darkness than is totally safe. So while he taught us in the use of the Keyblade, he gave us our armour - to protect us from the darkness."

Ventus breathed a sigh. "It's not a totally perfect protection," he admitted.

Terra shook his head. "No method is."

"...You guys learned that the hard way?" Kairi asked.

"Yeah," Aqua confirmed. "That wasn't our first fight at the Keyblade Graveyard against Xehanort and Vanitas."

With a deep inhale, Ventus changed the subject. "So," he asked Kairi, aiming a finger at the castle. "You ever been inside?"

* * *

They passed a Keyblade grave on their way to the castle - Eraqus' Keyblade had been driven into the ground not far from the courtyard, with a wreath and three glass stars hanging around the guard. Two steps in the door, Kairi was absolutely  _amazed_ at what she saw - a broad hallway extended to the opposite wall, with accesses to a pair of staircases that took them to the upper level, which had enough room to host a _seven-on-thirteen_  in the open area before three simple, yet opulent thrones. On the wall opposite those thrones was a beautiful stained-glass pattern, whose light shone down onto the hall.

"You mean  _this_ is where you guys lived while you were training?" Kairi exclaimed.

"Sora had much the same reaction," Aqua admitted.

"Is it really so impressive?" Terra asked.

Kairi shook her head in disbelief. "You guys can do a  _lot_ more with your Keyblades than the rest of us," she observed, "so if you were here long enough to learn most of it, I don't blame you for not feeling the wonder anymore. But this place is  _beautiful_."

Ventus chuckled. "Yeah," he conceded. "I guess it is."

With a deep breath, Kairi turned to face the stained-glass window. "...I'm glad Sora had the chance to see it."

There was a moment of quiet; then Aqua stepped back. "So, Kairi," she mused. "You came all this way. Seeing as I've finally got my Keyblade back..." She turned around, the weapon appearing in her grip. "Care for a spar?"

Kairi whirled around. "With  _you_?" she asked, her voice a few pitches higher than normal out of fear. "Maybe we'd better not try that..."

"What?" Aqua teased. "Tell me you're not scared."

"With respect,  _Master Aqua_ ," Kairi insisted, "the three most powerful magic users I've ever seen cast with my own eyes are, in order, Merlin, Master Yen Sid, and  **you**. And I'm assuming I saw Merlin cast something instead of just activating something that had been cast before."

Aqua shook her head. "Then why don't we leave the magic out of it," she suggested. "You and your Keyblade, against me and mine."

"...Maybe," Kairi mused. "Alright, yeah, let's try that."

Terra turned to Aqua. "You haven't had a Keyblade since we got back," he observed. "You've been sitting back and casting stuff the whole time. And now you're gonna try a fight against someone in the middle of a journey?"

"What?" Aqua argued, "you think I'm not up for it?"

Ventus chuckled. "I am not missing this," he proclaimed. Then, calling out to the castle; "Hey, Chirithy!"

"Who?" Kairi followed his gaze as something small and  _fluffy_ stepped into the room. "Oh Kingdom Hearts what is that it's so  _cute!_ "

"Kairi, focus," Aqua reprimanded. "Not using magic doesn't mean I'm gonna go easy on you."

Destiny's Embrace appeared in Kairi's hands.

Aqua took a fighting stance.

Terra retreated to the edge of the area.

Ventus pulled out his Gummiphone to take pictures.

Chirithy hopped onto a railing and swung his hands, and a puff of smoke manifested between the two Keyblade wielders.

Kairi and Aqua charged one another; their Keyblades moved as they drew near, and the two found their weapons sparking as they clashed. For a brief moment, neither had dominance; then Aqua's expertise showed itself, and she quickly twisted her weapon, putting weight in the right place for Kairi to lose leverage. The moment her struggle faltered, Kairi leapt away, leaving Aqua's follow-up swinging at nothing; the Master charged forward before she could land, and Kairi found herself leaning unpleasantly far back in an effort to evade, the blue Keyblade brushing through her bangs in the process.

Her weight started to topple her backwards, and she knew striking the weapon with her own would leave her open; Kairi quickly slammed her hands to the ground, bringing her feet up in a kick, and Aqua yelped as the blow connected with her forearms. Then she pushed herself back onto her feet, more grounded this time, and went for a thrust of her own as soon as she was upright. Aqua twisted aside, bringing her Keyblade for a round blow, and Kairi stepped away from one, two, three, four swings before meeting the fifth on her own Keyblade and immediately moving into a counter-swing.

Aqua met the blow on her own and tried to retaliate with a thrust; Kairi struck the attack aside, and Aqua putting her weight into the thrust meant she ended up with her back to Kairi. Her attempt to bring her Keyblade down on Aqua's back was interrupted on an over-the-shoulder block that her expression implied she immediately regretted - nonetheless, it stopped Kairi's blow, and Aqua promptly whirled around for a downward swing. Kairi swung her Keyblade up against it, the meeting of blows leaving both of them recoiling, and when Aqua made to swing across Kairi's midsection, she  _leapt over the Keyblade Master_.

Her foot connected between Aqua's shoulder blades, and she  _used the kick as leverage_ to leapt away.

Chirithy immediately snatched Ventus' Gummiphone, tapping to the album as Aqua stumbled from the blow. Kairi landed with heavy breath, mildly surprised at what she had pulled off as Aqua demanded, "Where did that come from?"

There was a moment of quiet.

Aqua swept her Keyblade aside to dash again... and cried out as her grip faltered on her weapon. "Ow, okay, ow," she muttered. "You win. That hurts."

Kairi laughed nervously. "Sorry?"

"No, no," Aqua insisted, "don't apologize. It was nice getting to have a friendly spar again." Cure magic danced around her hands as she reached for her back; after a moment, she rolled her shoulders. "That was really clever."

"How?"

Terra spoke up from the sidelines. "The unexpected  _always_ turns the tide of a battle," he insisted. "Who's gonna expect someone to throw a kick in a swordfight?"

"Well, I am, now," Ventus mused. "Can I have a turn?"

"Maybe later," Kairi insisted. "That was a little more intense than I'm used to."

* * *

The four Keyblade wielders (and Chirithy) spent a few hours wandering around, with Kairi being shown the various rooms that the castle hosted. Once she was convinced that she had rested enough - and her curiosity had run low - she decided to accept Ventus' challenge; they all retreated to the main hall, and Kairi noted with some amusement that Aqua was  _also_ of the opinion that the fight was deserving of some pictures.

"So, I can't do half as much magic as Aqua can," Ventus admitted. "Do we still have to stick with the Keyblades?"

Kairi drew her Keyblade, bracing it in both hands with the teeth aimed forward. " _Yes._ "

Ventus drew his in a reverse grip, pounding his palm against the pommel. "Alright, fine."

Chirithy marked the start of the fight again with another puff of smoke, and the two dashed towards one another. Ventus didn't get close enough to cross blades, however; with a sudden rush of movement, he arced around Kairi, leaving her skidding to a stop as he twisted around to bring his Keyblade down into her back. Kairi tried to perform the same over-the-shoulder block and shared Aqua's immediate regret - the position put all the weight of the blow on her shoulder - but quickly twisted around in an effort to bring her Keyblade down on his sword arm.

The strike landed on Ventus' Keyblade, and he promptly charged into a rushing flurry of swings that Kairi barely managed to step aside of. She quickly thrust her Keyblade at him while he was still mid-motion on the last one, but Ventus managed to duck under it, swiping at her midsection. Kairi moved her weapon to block it, barely holding it back; the motion left her Key twisting in her hand, and she loosened her grip on it for just a moment before seizing the handle again in a reverse grip of her own, drawing it back.

Her Keyblade rushed forward, and Ventus barely managed to raise his guard before her blinding blow connected with it - and sent Ventus  _skidding back_ across the hall. Kairi quickly turned her Keyblade back around, seizing it two-handed again as Ventus brought his own Keyblade back; he hurled it forward, and Kairi narrowly managed to duck under the flying weapon. She heard it coming back towards her and turned to face it; then she swept her weapon up at the whirling Keyblade, knocking it into the air above her. Before it could even reach a point where Ventus could  _try_ to catch it, she turned around to face him, bringing her own Keyblade back; then she  _charged_ forward, a single motion that had her speeding at him Keyblade-first, and Ventus barely managed to stumble away.

The weapon reappeared in Ventus' grip as Kairi turned around, and this time he met the charge on his own weapon, leaving the two of them with their weapons crossed.

Ventus chuckled.

Kairi gave a smirk in response.

Both of them broke the lock at once, leaping away; Ventus brought his Keyblade across to his left, and Kairi seized hers in a two-handed grip to her right.

Then they charged forward, each moving their weapon to strike and finding it colliding with the other's. One, two, three, four, five, six; both leaped to give their seventh blows more force, and when they collided, their feet never touched the ground. Eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve; each blow took them higher and higher off the ground.

Ventus twisted away to give a whirling blow more force, and Kairi propelled herself higher to evade it; then she made to bring her Keyblade down in a vertical strike, and he spun back around to catch it on his.

And the moment their weapons collided, something  _crashed_ outside.

The sound broke the tide of their battle; Ventus and Kairi landed, one-two, and Terra, Aqua, and Chirithy all shot to their feet in concern.

"Heartless."

Kairi dashed towards the entrance first, but Ventus passed her in a moment, leaping over the railing and dropping straight towards the doors. Kairi seized it with her left hand and vaulted it, keeping her right closed firmly on Destiny's Embrace, and the doors were already open as she landed behind Ventus. Terra and Aqua were right behind them; Aqua had drawn her Keyblade as she charged the doors, leaping onto the railing and then hopping down; Terra seized the railing two handed and twisted himself over it, drawing his weapon as he fell.

In the courtyard were a large number of Shadows - and to the concern of everyone, they swarmed together, taking a formation that stood tall upon the ground.

"Demon Tower!" Aqua cried out.

"Split up!" Kairi instructed.

The four of them broke ranks as they dashed down the stairs; Terra and Kairi ended up on the far side of the court, and Ventus and Aqua found themselves guarding the doors. Aqua was the first one to strike, throwing a sphere of voltage that collided with the tower and sent lightning surging through it; Kairi threw a Pearl after it while it was still sparking, the light magic soaring through the mass of Shadows and then arcing around to strike them again before it faded out. Ventus quickly moved, bringing his Keyblade into a spinning blow up the tower's side that had wind ripping up around him; when the Shadows separated, scattering across the courtyard, Terra brought his Keyblade down with enough force to rip stones out of the paving, shattering a few Heartless.

The Shadows made to converged on Aqua; she quickly raised a barrier around herself, causing them to form  _around_ her. That left a clear weakness in its structure that Ventus quickly made to exploit; he hurled his Keyblade at it, and wind wrapped his weapon as he directed it to glance around Aqua's barrier, breaking the Shadows that maintained the tower's structure. It quickly wavered, making to come down on Ventus while he was undefended; Terra quickly put himself in the Heartless' path, force ripping up around his Key as he stopped the blow and then whirling around him as he spun to scatter them.

Ventus' Keyblade returned to his grip as the Shadows reformed into the tower again; this time they made to swing towards Kairi, who quickly cast a Waterga around herself to fend them off. The end result was that she was flung into the air - but otherwise unharmed - as she directed the magic to crash over the Heartless; Aqua quickly raised her Keyblade, causing ice crystals to manifest from beneath the tower and strike it from the inside. Ventus raised his own Keyblade, and Aeroga surged around the Heartless, prompting them to scatter apart; then Terra twisted into a whirlwind of blows, trying to break as many Heartless as they could before the tower could reform.

The three knights exchanged glances; then Ventus turned to Kairi. "Hold it!"

"What?!" Kairi shrieked.

"Bind the Heartless!" Aqua instructed her. "Hold them for just a few seconds!"

The tower twisted towards Kairi again; she hurled a Pearl straight into the mass, causing it to arc down the tower's height. Then she focused - and the next magic she loosed had the Heartless dragged together, imprisoned in the center of the forecourt.

Terra raised his Keyblade - a massive heap of stone manifested above the Shadows, and flames covered it as it came down and broke over them.

Ventus dashed beneath the Heartless - he raised his Keyblade, causing pillars of light to shine skyward above him, cleaving through the Heartless.

Aqua turned her Keyblade forward - an orb of fiery magic flew from the tip, and when it collided with the entrapped tower, a  _blinding flash_ consumed the courtyard.

When Kairi's vision cleared, a single Shadow was falling to the ground, and it broke into smoke when it hit the ground.

"...Woah..." A wide smile rose on Kairi's face as the others let their Keyblades vanish. "That was... incredible," she proclaimed.

"Experience pays off," Terra admitted.

Kairi's gaze fell. "Sora went on four journeys, and had to start from scratch after every one," she recalled. "Experience only pays off if you keep it."

Aqua sighed. "I guess you've got a point," she conceded. "Sorry."

Ventus stepped forward. "You okay?" he asked. "That looked like it came a little closer than was totally saf- Ow!" He was caught off-guard when Kairi bashed the teeth of Destiny's Embrace lightly against his knuckles. "What was that for?"

"Well," Kairi mused, "I figured Aqua kind of set precedence for ending the spar after a single blow, so-"

" _What!?"_

Terra, Aqua, and Kairi burst out laughing, and it wasn't long before Ventus was joining in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic is ten days old and officially has more hits than OtherSelf Online, which is five times as long and has been around since the start of December 2017. My only works with more hits are my Legend of Zelda fics that are part of a continuous series. #kingdomheartsislight


	10. Refuge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is where the story gets a good deal more unpleasant. Thought I should give you a warning. Not that I'm sure it's necessary with tags like that, but...

"What did I think I could do?"

In every world since Kairi had left the Destiny Islands, she had allowed herself to be caught up in whatever exploits she had found herself a part of. And without a doubt, she was glad to have travelled the worlds on her own merits, to have seen them with her own eyes. But her primary motive for having gone on a journey was to meet the people Sora had met - to touch the hearts that he had touched - in an effort to feel a little closer to the boy who had faded that day on the Destiny Islands, and ease the sorrow she felt at his absence.

And on returning to the Ocean Between after her exploits in every world, the sorrow had seized her again. She had let her raft drift on the sea of stardust longer than she believed was truly necessary, between her departure from one world and her arrival in the next, never actively making to direct it to a destination until she had been given some time alone with her feelings. She didn't regret her travels, or meeting any of the people she had encountered; but the pain had yet to lessen, truly, and now she was convinced that it never would.

Kairi buried her face in her arms. What had she thought she would achieve? Sora and Riku had gone on worldly journeys with _purpose_ \- to find those who had been lost, to hold back those who meant to bring harm, to gain the strength they needed for the trials to come. To be true, the journey was itself rewarding; experiences to behold, sights to see. But Kairi had set off without any overarching goal; she had been wandering from world to world, letting the waves take her wherever she might end up.

No. That wasn't quite true. She had meant to achieve one thing - and though she had known from the beginning that it was a foolish dream, part of her hoped that she would find a means to achieve it nonetheless. A heavy breath emerged from her, and she pushed herself to her feet, stepping to the edge of the raft and gazing into the Ocean Between - wishing that she could reach through to the afterworld.

"...I want to see you again."

Tears rose in her eyes, and she closed her eyes, letting them fall.

"With all my heart."

Wind.

Without warning, without  _place_ , a wind began to blow; a perverse wind, dark and malevolent. Kairi turned towards the sound, and she saw the sail of her raft began to move; stardust waved in the wake of her vessel, and her footing shook, leaving her falling to her knees. Panicked, she turned to face the direction she was moving, and the sight chilled her blood; she would swear the sea on which she sailed was  _terminating_ , pouring over an edge and scattering so thin she had no hopes of finding purchase.

For that one moment, fear had an iron grip on Kairi's heart.

And then that moment ended.

Kairi closed her eyes, and offered no struggle as the waves took her over the edge.

* * *

A scream of pain broke out of Naminé.

Her sketchbook slipped from her hands, falling to the sand. Riku turned to her, concerned. "Naminé? What is it?"

"What just...?" Naminé reached for her head. "I just... hurt... all of a sudden..." Her gaze rose. "Kairi."

Her hand sank into the pocket of her dress, seizing Kairi's Gummiphone; she quickly tapped the screen, making to call Sora's device, and Riku came up at her side, his gaze on the screen.

The Gummiphone rang.

And it rang.

And it rang...

* * *

On waking, there is always a brief period before the waking world registers, whether arising from sleep to realize that a dream has ended, or coming from unconsciousness and discovering death has not taken hold.

Kairi opened her eyes, and there was a brief period in which she found herself gazing up at the starry sky, her mind briefly disconnected from reality. Then she became aware of a soreness throughout her body, and the connection reestablished... and Kairi realized that she was awake. Slowly, uncertainly, she pushed herself to an upright sitting position, glancing around her surroundings; she was lying in an empty town lit with neon, before a large pair of double doors... above which was a sign reading  _1st District_.

"Traverse Town?" Kairi slowly got to her feet. "Why am I here?"

She knew this town - it had been a sanctuary, during the time when the Heartless were on a rampage across the realm of light, devouring the hearts of worlds. Survivors had ended up in this town, and it had kept them safe. But now, no one was here - and individual of that emptiness, Kairi felt an  _unease_ , as though she were surrounded by enemies she could not see.

Slowly, she made her way through the town, walking around the jewelry shop and stepping into 2nd District. As she made her way down the steps to the ground level of the district, a worrying thought rose in her mind.  _What happened while I was sailing? I said... I wanted to see him again. Did I...?_ The air seemed to press down on her from all sides.  _Have I...?_

Tears began to pour down her face.

_I'm sorry, Naminé... I'm sorry, Xion... I'm sorry, Riku..._

With heavy heart, and without bothering to fight her tears or wipe them away, Kairi pushed herself to keep walking. Eventually, she found herself at the doors to 3rd District; she leaned against one surface, and it took a moment before she had the strength to push it open, stumbling inside. Slowly, she wandered her way down the steps, each step threatening to be her last before her legs gave way beneath her; by some miracle, she found her shaky legs taking her out into the open area.

Someone was standing there... dressed in black and red. His body seemed ephemeral - flickering in and out of existence, never fully solid - but she could see enough of him through her tears, and the spiky hair was unmistakable.

"...Sora?"

The moment she uttered that name, the figure solidified - and in the same instant did Kairi realize her mistake. This outfit was a much darker black, much more sparsely adorned with a much more sinister red. It wasn't cloth - it was a fibrous weave that looked almost organic, clinging to his body. It didn't even look to be clothing; it seemed to be a single piece covering his body, flowing bloody over his hands, extending down his legs until it vanished beneath a pair of thick black boots, and tight around his neck until it clung to his head. The spikes of his hair were not a soft brunette; they were pitch-black, as dark as his garb. Slowly, he turned around; the skin of his face was pale, lacking the complexion earned by sunlit days on the Destiny Islands. And his eyes were a piercing gold - a gold that struck innate fear into Kairi's pure heart of light.

"No..." Kairi stepped back. "You're... You're not..." She shook her head, terrified. "You're  _not_ Sora..."

And then, laughter - sinister, unkind laughter. The boy with Sora's face opened his mouth and  _laughed_ at Kairi's realization - laughing in a dark voice. The laughter only held for a moment; then he shook his head, as though astonished by her false recognition.

"As mistaken identities go, there are less understandable errors to make."

Kairi recognized that voice - she had heard that voice before... from the other side of a mask. "You... You were in the new Organization! I saw you at the Keyblade Graveyard!"

The boy with Sora's face raised his hands at his sides. "I'm grateful you remember me," he confessed. "Though I don't believe we've ever properly been introduced. Kairi, wasn't it?" He held out his hand, as though inviting her to take it.

"My name is Vanitas."

" _Vanitas!?_ "

Her reaction earned a laugh. "Does my reputation truly precede me?" Vanitas asked. "I can't remember having ever given my name without someone reacting, 'Oh,  _you're_ Vanitas' having heard of my exploits."

"How are you here?" Kairi demanded. "They told me - the seekers of darkness were struck down! To the last!"

"That..." Vanitas crossed his arms. "...is a very long story that I  _don't_ feel like telling."

Kairi started forward. "Don't hide things from me, you son of a-!"

She couldn't say Vanitas  _moved_ \- not quite. It almost seemed more like... the frames of a video bleeding into one another, missing a few that would have made the sequence seamless. One second he had his arms crossed; the next they were at his sides, and he was leaning to the left; the next he was mid-step, a few paces forward; and the next he was right up in Kairi's face. He seemed to walk straight through her, and Kairi cried out as she felt his darkness surround her,  _penetrate_ her; she stumbled back, terrified, and after a moment she turned to find herself facing the doors to 1st District. Vanitas was standing there, and he pushed the doors open before turning around to face her.

"Alright. If you insist."

He leaned back, falling towards the pavement - and his body seemed to  _melt_ , flawlessly, into the stone. Kairi dashed through the open doors, glancing around 1st District; then she saw him appear, sitting upon the railing of a balcony over a café.

"This town has a little secret," Vanitas informed her. "It only appears when someone out there has need of shelter. And the form it takes, and how it takes that form, depends on who it is giving shelter to. When refugees came from worlds the Heartless had devoured, it took foundation from the fragments and memories of the worlds they came from. When existences come to an end were dragged here at the edge of erasure, it was given shape by the dreams of a man whose compositions decided the rules of a layered world. And when I arrived here, it took entities from my own being, and used them to create a sanctuary. _My_ sanctuary."

He pushed himself off the balcony, landing before the café. "Emotions, not well-versed in their own existences. Traverse Town exists, here and now, on a bedrock of negativity. And so it attracts those who threaten to  _drown_ in negativity."

One hand was raised towards Kairi.

"The only princess of heart to maintain her place as one of the New Seven Hearts. And a guardian of light, what's more. What brings you to drown in negativity?"

" _Shut up!_ " Kairi shrieked. "Answer the question! How are you alive!?"

With a smirk, Vanitas stepped around the café, towards a door on the opposite wall of that to 3rd District. Kairi dashed after him as he pushed the doors open; then he took one step, and seemed to go over an edge, sinking into the pavement as she had before - and Kairi was left dashing across the surface he had vanished into, looking around before he sighted him atop a back-and-forth slope.

"Long ago, a man named Xehanort acquired an ancient Keyblade embedded with the Gazing Eye. He knew _of_ the Eye, but yearned to understand what significance it held; in his research, he learned a new facet of the χ-blade, in the likeness of which Keyblades were forged and over which was fought the Keyblade War." Kairi dashed up the slope as Vanitas approached a nearby wall; the slope continued flawlessly further down a street, and Vanitas seemed to pass through the wall as though it weren't there, though his voice still reached Kairi loud and clear.

"He discovered that the χ-blade had been the product of an element of light, and an element of darkness. So he sought two entities of powerful light and powerful darkness, with whom he could use to forge the χ-blade." Kairi dashed down the street, searching for Vanitas; she soon reached a four-way intersection, and Vanitas was leaning against the wall before an empty water flow at the end of one path. "In time, Xehanort did find a boy who contained a powerful darkness - one that, with proper tempering, could turn his heart pure without losing it forever.

"His name was Ventus."

Kairi dashed towards Vanitas, who pulled himself off the wall and started into the waterway; when Kairi arrived, he was already out of sight. "But Ventus refused to use the darkness inside him. So Xehanort cleft his heart in two, and separated the darkness from the boy who refused to use it. That darkness became a heart of its own, and darkness formed a body to possess." The waterway had a round mid-region, where Kairi found Vanitas standing on an upper level. "An empty creature from Ventus riven - to whom the name Vanitas was given."

"You came from  _Ventus?_ " Kairi exclaimed.

"I came from more of Ventus' heart than was left in his body," Vanitas confirmed. "He was dying, and so Xehanort took him to his own boyhood home - a quiet world, with salty seas and a sun that rose and set. A world that was... just too small. And there, a heart touched Ventus' heart - made him whole again. Something to replace that which had been taken away. And so that which had been taken away... took the form of that which replaced."

"That was... Sora," Kairi realized. "Sora's heart made Ventus whole again."

Vanitas nodded with a smirk; then he leapt from the upper level, and as he touched the surface on which Kairi stood, he  _passed through it_ without disturbance. Kairi glanced around, and continued through the waterway as Vanitas spoke again. "Eventually, Ventus and I did clash, in Xehanort's effort to create the χ-blade - and our hearts were joined together. But the effort ultimately failed - and Ventus would rather have his heart destroyed than maintain our union. He fragmented our hearts as best he could, and found refuge in the same heart that had once helped him.

"And in time, so did I."

Kairi emerged from the waterway and found Vanitas standing across a bridge. "During Sora's travels through the Sleeping Worlds, Xehanort reached out to me again - that I would join him in his refined efforts to forge the χ-blade. I found a place with enough negativity to make me whole again, and I resolved to serve as one of the thirteen seekers of darkness. And in time, Ventus' heart was returned to him, letting him serve as one of the seven guardians of light. And that's when you and I met in person."

He stepped around the corner on the other end of that bridge; Kairi rounded it after him, and found herself travelling down an alleyway. She reached a plaza with a towering fountain in the middle - and Vanitas had sat himself atop that fountain. Sitting on the fountain's rim was the mask Kairi had seen him wear before - a mask of black glass, on a frame of silver.

"That still doesn't explain how you're alive!" Kairi protested. "You were in the Keyblade Graveyard, and they finished you off!"

"Well, for that," Vanitas insisted, "you need to understand how  _they_ are alive."

He pushed himself off the surface, soaring over his mask and hitting the pavement outside the fountain - yes, _landing on_ it, rather than passing through it. "If I recall, it was  _Terra_ who met the nine of you on the other side of the canyon. He sent the Demon Tide. The Heartless consumed you all. Seven had their hearts separated from their souls while their bodies were in limbo. The eighth was struck by the force of a desperate defense, and his heart and body perished together... but he did not want to go."

Vanitas aimed a finger at Kairi. "And the last - better defended than the others - did not want him to go."

"Me?" Kairi exclaimed. "Better defended? But-"

"Your garb is a defense against the darkness, the same as the armour of Eraqus' sorry students," Vanitas confirmed. "And your heart of light reinforced that defense. Your desire that Sora survive, and Sora's subconscious certainty that you all be alive, gave him a lifeline. Tenuous... but sufficient. Through it, he returned. Then he saved the other seven, and reunited with you. Some witch had contacted Terra's lingering will in the meantime, and when Terra tried to make the second verse the same as the first... well, you know most of the story from there."

"What does that have to do with you?" Kairi demanded.

With a chuckle, Vanitas turned away, stepping towards his helmet on the fountain's rim. "In the Skein of Severance, we ended up with me and Terra against Ventus and Aqua. Eventually, Sora came along and ruined the stalemate. Terra and I went down. And the last blow that Sora landed on me..."

He pounded a fist against the top of his mask - and the left half of the mask was webbed with cracks, slowly falling away.

"...gave him a good look at his handiwork."

Kairi watched as the crumbled. "He saw your face?"

"Oh, more than that," Vanitas insisted, turning around. "He learned everything I've been telling you so far. Ventus had gotten over the point of 'I'm not gonna be Xehanort's raw materials', and was outraged. Because he thought that the circumstances had forced me into being Xehanort's little shadow puppet. He believes that everyone should be free to choose what they are. He had been left with nothing but a very fragile light, and felt that he never even got to turn down the chance to side with the darkness. And he thought that I, born of darkness, had never been given the opportunity to side with the light.

"But I had."

"What!?" Kairi could scarcely believe her ears.

Vanitas shook his head. "Old Master Xehanort wasn't  _stronger_ than me," he proclaimed. "That's the whole reason he took Terra's body in the first place. He was old, and he was fragile, and if I'd had even the slightest longing for the light, I could have broken his leg like a toothpick." He grinned. "I  **chose** to be darkness. The shadow that my brothers cast. Ventus accepted that."

He started to step around the fountain. "Sora... didn't."

Realization struck her like an arrow. "What...?"

"Sora wouldn't accept it," Vanitas proclaimed. "He couldn't believe what he was hearing." As he vanished around the fountain, Kairi made to circle around the other side and found him already approaching a pair of doors labelled  _4th District_. "He wasn't even able to  _comprehend_ why anyone connected to his heart would choose the darkness, knowing full well what it did, and hold to that decision, understanding they had the chance to take it back."

When Kairi passed through the doors, she found a mazey district on the other side; a tall tower stood in the middle, and there Vanitas was standing.

"He watched me perish, content in my darkness, and didn't want it to be."

Kairi was terrified at what she was hearing. "You're... alive... because of Sora?"

Vanitas nodded, a grin on his face, and turned away.

"...No," Kairi gasped. She started down the stairs of the district, chasing after him. "No, that's not true. That can't be true. You're lying!"

"I can't make that up," Vanitas insisted. "If I'd come back because Xehanort tossed my heart in an old replica before I died, I'd tell you that straight up. Depending on someone like Sora, who can't even believe in people making their own decisions? If it weren't true, I wouldn't pretend it was."

"Then what are you doing here?" Kairi demanded, stepping into an open square on the other side of the tower. "If you came back the way Sora did, you should be giving the worlds trouble by now!"

"But I didn't come back  _like Sora did_ ," Vanitas corrected. "Not quite." He was leaning against a door across the square, under a sign that read _5th District_. "I told you - this place appears when someone has need of shelter. Ventus accepted my decision, and was content with my passing. So I couldn't come to him. Sora wouldn't accept my decision... and wouldn't accept me as being darkness. So I couldn't come to him. That left me a returning heart, in need of shelter. No one wanted me. So I was left here, waiting."

He started through the doors, and Kairi chased after him. "Waiting for what?!"

She stepped in after him... and froze.

5th District was built around a large structure - from the glass rooftop, she would guess it was a garden of some kind. Standing at the edge of the rooftop was her raft - and standing upon the raft was Vanitas.

"An arrival," he answered. "My own negativity was strong enough to create an entire classification of monsters - individual of Heartless and Nobodies. When it provided the foundation for this town, it became a place where any negativity can take physical form." He turned to face Kairi. "But it takes every last drop I have just to keep this place intact. If I wanted a body, I needed someone else to arrive. Someone drowned in negativity."

A grin rose on his face. "And then you set out on a journey... _mourning_. And after one too many unpleasant reminders, you were mourning _with all your heart_."

The strength left Kairi's legs; she fell to her knees, terrified. "No..." The tears began to flow fresh. "No..."

"Yes," Vanitas proclaimed. "Sadness. Grief. Despair. You provided the negativity necessary for me to have form again."

"No..."

Vanitas leapt from the garden, landing before her. "What did you want?"

Kairi shook her head, bowing it shamefully. "No..."

"Just say it," Vanitas whispered. "What do you want?"

Silence in Traverse Town, save for Kairi's sobs.

"...I want to see Sora again."

Vanitas nodded. "That was the cause of your whole journey," he observed. "That was the sorrow that brought you here. You wanted to see Sora again. And for one moment, when you found me, you saw him."

"You're not..." Kairi shook her head. "You're not... Sora..."

"No, I'm not," Vanitas conceded. "But I can certainly try my best. I owe you that much - having brought me back, as you did."

Slowly, Kairi raised her gaze to the face looking down at her.

"Wouldn't you like that? To be able to look at your side, and see his face again, just as you once did? We could travel the worlds together."

The sorrow clouded her vision, and Vanitas wasn't there.

"Think of all the people you've met. All the friends who have become a part of his heart, just as he's become a part of theirs. What has it done for you?"

Gazing down at her, offering his hand, was the boy she knew.

"You could spend the rest of your life with a heart a greater part of his than any other. You could have him back."

Slowly, weakly, with her body trembling, Kairi reached for the offered hand.


	11. Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyone shipping Vanitas with a guardian of light is running on stupid optimism. Anyone shipping Vanitas with -Kairi-, of all guardians, is absolutely delusional.

"...I want to see Sora again."

Vanitas nodded. "That was the cause of your whole journey," he observed. "That was the sorrow that brought you here. You wanted to see Sora again. And for one moment, when you found me, you saw him."

"You're not..." Kairi shook her head. "You're not... Sora..."

"No, I'm not," Vanitas conceded. "But I can certainly try my best. I owe you that much - having brought me back, as you did."

Slowly, Kairi raised her gaze to the face looking down at her.

"Wouldn't you like that? To be able to look at your side, and see his face again, just as you once did? We could travel the worlds together."

The sorrow clouded her vision, and Vanitas wasn't there.

"Think of all the people you've met. All the friends who have become a part of his heart, just as he's become a part of theirs. What has it done for you?"

Gazing down at her, offering his hand, was the boy she knew.

"You could spend the rest of your life with a heart a greater part of his than any other. You could have him back."

Slowly, weakly, with her body trembling, Kairi reached for the offered hand.

* * *

Light.

She opened her eyes, and found herself lying on something that radiated light.

Slowly, she got to her feet, finding herself on an expansive disc.

The surface appeared to be glass, stained with colour.

Upon its surface was Kairi's image - slumbering against its edge.

Destiny's Embrace was gripped in her left hand, hanging at her side.

In circles along the opposite edge were the faces of her friends.

Riku, Naminé, Roxas, Xion, Lea, Ventus, Aqua, Terra.

Slowly, her gaze rose.

Standing at the opposite side was a boy in cloth of black and red.

Brown hair rested atop his head, spiked out in every direction.

"I said I would be a part of your life, no matter what."

He turned to face her, his blue eyes resting gently upon her.

"Did you think that was going to change because you couldn't see me?"

Tears welled in her eyes.

Her lips moved, but no sound emerged.

Without haste, he started to step across the station.

"I didn't want you spend the rest of your life looking for me."

"But I..."

"I'm sorry. I wish I didn't leave you behind. I didn't know any other way."

She shook her head, tears running down her face.

"It's not... It's not right."

"It is right. I spent so long trying to be able to use that power.

"I didn't think about whether I was using it the way it was meant."

"It's not fair...! I...

"Ever since we first saw that darkness, you've been pulled onto so many journeys.

"And every time I think you can rest easy, the worlds pull you away again!

"I can't... I can't take it, knowing you'll never come back this time."

He reached her, and slowly set his hands on her shoulders.

"Did you think I ever wanted to leave you behind?"

Their connection was all the prompting they needed.

She took a single step towards him, and wrapped her arms around him.

He met her touch with his own, and she buried her head in his shoulder.

Neither made to fight their sorrow, letting their tears flow.

"I miss you..."

"And I miss you. But that doesn't mean I want you to chase after me."

A light wrapped his body, and she shook her head.

"Please... don't go..."

His lips moved, but no sound emerged.

In an instant, he had faded; shining particles floated in the air where he had been.

She fell to her knees on the station, crying all her tears.

* * *

"...Light."

Kairi's fingers paused, a hair's breadth from Vanitas' palm, and that single whispered word emerged from between her lips. He had no chance to react before magic surged around her - a blinding light surged up around Kairi, and a scream of pain emerged from Vanitas as it surged through him.

And Traverse Town  **warped** as he was struck, a gash opening up across the city.

Slowly, Kairi got to her feet. "You're... not... Sora..." She shook her head, flinging tears from her face. "What made you think.... you could take his place?"

She raised her gaze to Vanitas, still recoiling from her blow; his expression changed into a sinister grin. "Careful what you're slinging around," he warned, holding out his hand. "Wouldn't want to risk breaking something."

From his hand dropped a shape - a star, made from seashells, with a face on the topmost point, hanging from a chain between his fingers.

"What?" Kairi's hand sank into her pocket, finding it empty. "Where did you-!?" She remembered when he had walked through her in 3rd District, and realized that hadn't been just for show; her gaze narrowed as she turned it back to the blackheart before her.

"A 'Wayfinder'," Vanitas mused. "That's what this is called, right?" He lay the star down in his other hand. "A good luck charm, shaped like the paopu fruit, made from thalassa shells. As long as you carry one, you'll always find your way back to your friends. An unbreakable connection." He angled it from side to side. "Yeah, Aqua had to make do with glass and metal, worked her magic to make up for it. But this... this is a real good luck charm." He raised his gaze to Kairi. "How well has it served you?"

"Give that back." Kairi's voice had gone cold.

"Nothing but arts and crafts," Vanitas spat, tipping his hand and letting the star start to fall before seizing it by the chain again. "Aqua and Ventus and Terra carried around proper connecting magic for eleven years, and didn't achieve anything until a bunch of  _strangers_ stumbled across them." He began to swing the charm in a loop around his hand. "What good is an old islander superstition, put together by a girl who had yet to see anything outside her tiny world?"

"Give. Me. The charm."

Vanitas slipped a finger of his free hand under the collar of his fibrous outfit, pulling it off of his neck and dropping the charm underneath. The tightness of the garb meant it didn't fall very far, the star standing out against his chest in mockery of Sora's crown necklace as Vanitas let the collar snap back against his neck. "You wanted to see Sora again. And you thought that some seashells and a prayer would take you to the Final World and let you bring him back home? Is this the best a guardian of light can do? This is pathetic!"

Kairi brought her hands together before her, and Destiny's Embrace appeared in her grip. "You're one to talk," she growled. "The seekers of darkness are fallen. And you will be felled again, as many times as it takes. Thinking I'm going to let you back into the realm of light? Thinking I would ever let you stand in Sora's place!? This is a  **fantasy!** "

Darkness burst out around Vanitas' hand, and his fingers curled around the handle of a Keyblade - a black and red Keyblade that looked like it had been forged out of gears. "I don't  _believe_ in fantasy."

A tremor coursed across Traverse Town - and the world began to  _tear itself apart_. Kairi felt it coming before it did; the pavement  _fragmented_  around them, closing in on 5th District, and gravity became a figment of their imaginations as the pieces of Traverse Town began to drift in the endless starry sky. Darkness surged around Vanitas, and then burst out in a ring as he was propelled forward, Keyblade-first.

" _Show me **anguish!**_ "

Kairi moved her Keyblade to meet Vanitas' strike - and the connection of weapon against weapon sent Kairi tumbling through the void. She struggled to right herself and found Vanitas soaring down towards her; this time she made the first move, hurling a Pearl at him and then directing herself towards one of the town fragments to give her leverage to leapt after it. The light magic homed in and struck Vanitas, faltering his flight; Kairi brought her Keyblade into his stomach, throwing him across the emptiness.

He slammed into one fragment... and vanished into its surface. Kairi saw him emerge from another at her side, and moved her Keyblade into his path - but Vanitas only arced over her, lashing his Keyblade across her shoulder plates and then dealing a violent kick to throw her across the void. She twisted mid-flight, seeing him emerge from another piece, and she tried to move her Keyblade forward to meet him - but her blow passed through him as though he wasn't there, and then he manifested behind her, bringing his Keyblade up in a hard swing that hurled her across the void and then slammed her into yet another fragment.

Vanitas emerged from the surface at her side, and slammed his foot down on her chest, earning a strangled cry of pain. "I  _told_ you," he proclaimed. "This town takes form from my negativity. Right now, this entire world is Unversed - part of my darkness,  _part of me!_ " His other foot moved forward, and for a moment the whole of his weight was on Kairi; she tried to scream, and lacked the breath. "You are powerless here. When I'm through with you, you won't even be a  _memory!_ "

He raised his foot, intending to bring it down on Kairi's skull.

Kairi's free hand moved - and  _chains of white_  extended from nowhere, curling around his boot.

And when she spoke, another voice spoke with her.

" **Don't talk to me about memory!** "

Vanitas was flung back and Cure magic washed over Kairi as she tried to rise. "N-Naminé?"

 _Kairi!_ Her Nobody's voice rang in her mind.  _Thank Kingdom Hearts, that was too close. I knew something went wrong. Riku and I are trying to-_

"No!" Kairi insisted, readying her Keyblade. "I have to do this myself!"

 _You can't!_ Naminé protested.  _You're at a disadvantage in that world! On your own, he'll-_

"I'm not on my own," Kairi proclaimed. "Our hearts are connected. But I have to do this with my own hands. Whatever aid you can give me from there, I'll take it - but the only Keyblade that touches him is mine!"

 _...Fine,_ Naminé conceded.  _Then at least let me even the field!_

Kairi leapt from the fragment on which she stood - and it  **shattered** , Vanitas tearing through it with his Keyblade and then flying through the gap before it was there. Kairi hurled a Pearl at him, and Vanitas met it with a blast of darkness before closing in, locking his Keyblade against hers while the two were upside-down to one another.

"Who's the witch!?" he demanded.

"Her?" Kairi scoffed. "She's nobody."

Gravity seized the fighters - but not the fragments of the world around them. Kairi forced Vanitas back as a chain of white extended between two pieces below her; she landed swiftly on one, readying her Keyblade, and Vanitas landed across from her. "What do you think you can do?!"

"Let's find out."

She charged down the chain, and Vanitas dashed at her in retaliation; he tried to bring his Keyblade down on Kairi's skull, and rather than put her Keyblade in its path, she brought it into the side of his blade, knocking it aside. That left him still fighting the momentum as she moved her Keyblade into his legs; he was thrown off his footing as she twisted aside and propelled herself off the chain, and he slammed into the chain hard roughly, tumbling through the void uncontrollably for a moment.

Another chain formed between two more fragments, providing a foothold for Kairi to land upon. Vanitas righted himself, landing upon one fragment and then sinking into it; then the higher anchoring point of Kairi's chain shattered, Vanitas flying out of the rubble. The loose end of the chain quickly bound itself around his leg, and then another chain extended from a free fragment to seize his opposite arm; Kairi dashed up the chain, and once she was near enough she brought her Keyblade across his sword arm, knocking his weapon out of his grip in the process.

Vanitas twisted in the air, wrenching his limbs out of the chains and diving; Kairi leapt after him as the chains bound themselves to one another, coming down weapon-first. The gearwork Keyblade reappeared in Vanitas' hand as he turned to face her, and their weapons met; then a chain extended between them, and Kairi shifted as Vanitas collided with it spine-first, putting her feet against his stomach until her momentum died on the links. She leapt away and landed upon the chain as he forced himself to right; then he charged up the link, vanishing into its anchoring point, and Kairi took the initiative and leapt skyward.

Her momentum hadn't died before Vanitas rushed out of the nearest fragment - and the gravity in the void reversed, leaving Kairi to twist so she was feet-down before meeting his Key on hers. Another chain appeared beneath her; Kairi forced Vanitas down towards it first, and when he twisted to right himself, his Keyblade ended up over his shoulder from the haste of his movement. Kairi immediately brought her own weapon into it with as much force as she could muster, and Vanitas gave a yell of pain as the jagged edge of his weapon's shaft dug into his shoulder; then she swung her Keyblade across his back, throwing him down the chain.

He vanished into the anchoring point, and Kairi leapt aside of the chain; another manifested perpendicular, and Vanitas lunged from a fragment above her, his Keyblade whirling before him with the teeth draped in shadow. Kairi stepped aside as he rushed past her; then her own Keyblade began to shine, and she whirled it before her as she met his next charge with her own. The two found their Keys grinding against one another, and for a moment there was stalemate; then a chain extended behind Kairi, and she moved her feet to use it as leverage, forcing Vanitas back and then racing across his side.

She landed upon one fragment for a moment, leaping away before he could connect with any other and landing upon the chain she had propelled herself from. Then, when Vanitas vanished into another fragment, she leapt higher, and two more chains appeared beneath her, so near one another that her feet rested upon a cross. Vanitas rushed her from above; Kairi only dashed onto one chain, letting him collide with the chains before bringing her Keyblade across his legs again; then he righted himself, landing upon the other chain, and brought his Keyblade back.

Black crystals manifested in the air before him, and he thrust his Keyblade between them as a prolonged blast of darkness soared forward. Kairi quickly thrust her Keyblade forward, and light crystallized at its tip, forming an angular barrier that send the darkness splitting around her on all sides; the moment his onslaught ceased, she flung the crystals forward, causing them to slam into Vanitas and throw him across the void.

Kairi quickly stepped to the center of the cross. "Naminé, where is it?"

The gravity shifted again, to a sideways angle this time; Kairi shifted her footing on the chains such that she still had a foothold. The chain that was towering beside her vanished as Vanitas charged her from the opposite side - Kairi moved her Keyblade towards him, crossing blades with a blow that sent her skidding back.

"You really think you can overcome me here?" Vanitas demanded.

Kairi's foot moved, rising up to a pointed kick that slammed into Vanitas' sword arm; his Keyblade faltered, and Kairi flung it aside and lashed hers across his stomach. Vanitas tried to retaliate with a rising swing, but Kairi met it on her Keyblade; the blow had enough force to knock her into the air, and she quickly twisted mid-rise and drove a heel into his jaw, leaving him stumbling back.

"Nope," Kairi conceded.

_Raft!_

The chains vanished as Kairi leapt back; her vessel flew down between her and Vanitas as they began to plummet. He lunged at Kairi before she could try to make use of it, their Keyblades crossing; he managed to force her earthward, but a chain bound his leg to the wood, dragging him down to hasten his fall and then vanishing. Kairi slowed her fall enough for Vanitas to catch up, and she twisted into a kick to hurl him into the raft.

She thrust her Keyblade downward - in the void beneath them, a gate opened, and the two Keyblade wielders and the raft fell into it.

* * *

The raft landed flat upon the sea of stardust, sending waves across the Ocean Between. Vanitas landed roughly upon the raft, and then Kairi landed upon  _him_ , driving her feet into his arms hard enough to elicit a violent  _crack_. Chains extended around his midsection and legs, dragging him against the mast and leaving his Keyblade upon its surface; then two more circled around his arms, extended over the stern, followed the underside of the raft, crested the prow, and joined one another around the mast, pulling taut and earning a yell of pain from the former seeker of darkness.

Light shone on the tip of Kairi's Keyblade, and she lashed it into two hard blows, tearing a **χ** across his garments - and his torso. The upper most portion fell away, exposing the seashell star he had trapped against his chest; Kairi seized it by the chain, pulling it away, before raising her Keyblade toward Vanitas' neck.

"You. End. Here."

Vanitas gave an exhausted laugh, lowering his head so that his jaw very nearly brushed the teeth of her Key. "For how long this time, I wonder."

"No," Kairi proclaimed. "No more returns. No more second chances. This time, no more Vanitas."

"I told you," Vanitas defied, "I have my lifeline. He won't accept me as a being of darkness. Sora's heart is connected to-"

" _Sora is_ ** _dead!_** "

The force of Kairi's yell send waves across the sea of stardust. She bowed her head, and tears began to flow. "Sora... is dead. He's not coming back. And I was blind to ever believe that he would."

Vanitas shook his head. "You don't know tha-"

" _I **do** know that!_" Kairi roared. "You said it yourself. He came back the first time.... because he didn't want to die, and I didn't want him to die." She shook her head. "I _still_ don't want him dead... but he just wanted me to live."

Her grip tightened around her Keyblade.

"With all his heart."

"You- You want him back," Vanitas objected. "You kept that stupid Wayfinder your whole journey. You were trying to drag him back out of the Final World! You-"

" ** _I love him!_** "

Kairi's words silenced Vanitas in an instant as she raised her gaze back to him, screaming. " _I love him!_ That means I _want him back!_ That means I will miss him every moment of every day for the  _rest of my life!_ That means I will  _mourn him, forever, with all my heart!_ "

She shook her head, shifting her grip to seize her charm by the star.

"...But that also means I have to respect his choice."

He had no power to act - no power to stop her. Vanitas could only watch as she raised the charm at her side, her hands shaking, her tears pouring down her face. Her fingers curled around the corners, and she opened her mouth, roaring in despair as her grip tightened.

The charm cracked, its points shattered, and Kairi was left closing her fist with thalassa shells between her knuckles.

Then she raised her Keyblade, and thrust it forward - and the flowers upon the teeth punched out the other side of the mast.

Blood trickled from Vanitas' mouth; the chains vanished, and his body hung limp. The dark glow in his eyes faded, and after a long moment, his form dissipated in a mist of darkness, fading away like any one of his Unversed before him.

Kairi fell to her knees upon the raft, leaving Destiny's Embrace impaled there; and she cried as her raft sailed on the Ocean Between.

* * *

In time, the sea of stardust became a sea of water. Naminé was waiting at the cove, in the dead of night, when Kairi's raft flowed onto the seas surrounding the Destiny Islands. Wind and tide dragged it onto the shore, and Kairi weakly reached up with her right hand, seizing her Keyblade for support. Her left hand was still closed on the fragments of her charm as she pulled herself to her feet; Naminé approached her as she took one, two, three shaky steps forward. On the fourth, her foot made contact with the shore, and on the fifth her legs gave out beneath her - she started to collapse before Naminé caught her, curling her arms around Kairi to hold her up.

"...You don't deserve this," Naminé murmured. "You don't deserve this sorrow."

Kairi shook her head. "...But Sora deserves these tears, in his memory."

Naminé nodded weakly. "There are worse ways to remember someone than by shedding tears."


	12. Memorial

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I deliberately wrote the end of Chapter 10/start of Chapter 11 to be evocative of the dreamworld scene in Final Fantasy XIII-2, where Serah is tempted by the false Lightning after getting defeated in the Void Beyond. The whole 'reach for the offered hand, but -then- the choice is made' thing. Different specifics as a result of a non-interactive medium, of course, and I'll admit that my mind's visuals were more 'Cinematic Action' than 'Live Trigger', but still, the reference was there.
> 
> I want to know if any of my readers would like to see an analogue to the paradox ending consequent of saying 'yes'. Which, as a warning, will be hardcore non-canon to my fanfic. Bad enD is distinct from True enD.  
> (Yes that's a Vocaloid reference)
> 
> It didn't feel right just putting up a chapter asking the question, so I decided to add a little something as a proper conclusion. More sadness ahead.

"Wasn't expecting to be back here again so soon."

Terra's observation drew Ventus' attention as their armour vanished. "You mean you don't like this place?"

"No," Terra insisted. "The opposite, actually. It's nice. Small, maybe, but... peaceful." He shook his head. "But with how long I took between my first visit and my second... I was worried that something would hold me back from visiting a third time. At least in any decent time."

Aqua nodded. "I know what you mean," she agreed. "This place doesn't deserve to have any darkness visited upon it. If something else came up, I would wish that I wouldn't come here again before the trouble calmed down. Or at least that I didn't have any real cause to."

Ventus smiled briefly, though it faded before long. "Yeah. Fair enough."

They stepped through the door in the cove, emerging onto the beach they had each visited so long ago. The sun was just barely visible on the horizon, a faint glow about to fade. On the bridge to the islet with the paopu fruit were gathered several people already; the three of them circled around, coming up on the near end, and as they got closer, Riku - at the back of the crowd - turned to greet them. "Terra, Aqua, Ven. Glad you could make it."

"We're not late, are we?" Ventus asked.

"No," Riku assured him. "Don't worry."

He carefully stepped through the crowd, and approached Kairi as the last glow of the sun vanished over the horizon. She had been at work for hours now; a small spade was in her hand, with which she had been digging at the sand of the battlefield where Riku and Sora had once fought so many battles. A large pile rested at the edge of the pit she now knelt within, deep enough that her hunched on her knees at the edge nearest the bridge left her hidden from the crowd, and wide enough that Riku wouldn't think himself able to stand against one edge and touch the opposite with his Keyblade.

He stepped into it, and when Kairi failed to cease her digging, he stepped forward and set a hand on her shoulder. "Kairi."

Her spade stopped moving, and Riku saw it shaking from the tremors of her hand.

"I think there's enough room."

Slowly, Kairi pulled her tool to her lap. There were still tears trailing down her face; after a long moment, she started to rise, and Riku helped her climb out of the pit she had dug. They turned to the crowd; Roxas, Xion, Lea, Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Terra, Ventus, Aqua, and Naminé were all gathered there. No words needed be spoken; they all knew why they had been asked to come here, and to speak of it again would only press them to more sorrow than they already held.

Kairi stepped to the side, and Riku turned to the open pit.

"Sora. You are my oldest friend. Try as I might, I can't count how many times you and I have competed, gone against each other. I couldn't comprehend the number of times we've crossed swords. Sometimes it was just innocent competition, and we'd never come away with anything more than bruises. Sometimes, lives - worlds - were on the line, and every time, he with the nobler pursuit came away victorious.

"I wouldn't have it that any one of those days hadn't happened."

He raised his right hand, and a glow emerged around his hand... but not much further. When it faded, his fingers were curled around the handle of Way to the Dawn - wings of black and white circled his grip, and the blade was snapped just a few inches from the eye in the hilt.

"This was the first sword I carried that was anything more than wood. I carried this weapon until I had the chance to take your Keyblade. And when you took it back, I carried it again - whenever I was the one swinging my weapon. It seems only right I give it to the guy whose weapon it crossed."

Riku held the fragment of weapon over the pit and released it, dropping it inside to impale within the wet sand.

"Thank you for years of friendship."

He turned away and walked to Kairi's side; after a quiet moment, Lea stepped forward next.

"Sora. The first time I met you, I thought that you were the most gullible fool ever. We - the Organization - we lured you to a place you had no business being, claiming that it would help you find your friends, and you never hesitated to think that maybe we were lying. But... now, I think we had it backwards. We tried to bend you to our will, and tell you who your friends were. And all we did was help you make a new friend.

"You're the one who played us for fools."

He reached into coat pocket, and drew out something. It was a small discus of black plastic; on the outer surface was a red portion that bore a bright orange flame with a monstrous face upon it, grinning out.

"This was the first weapon I carried. Well, I don't know if it deserves to be called a weapon - least not with the sort of things I'm swinging these days. But you don't need a weapon, do you? Your friends are your power - and now, you're all of ours. Got it memorized?"

Lea held the childish weapon over the pit and released it, dropping it inside to clatter beside Way to the Dawn.

"Thanks for making me somebody again."

He turned back and rejoined the crowd, and Terra made his way forward next.

"Sora. When I was told that you were one of the boys I had met on this island, so long ago... I struggled to remember you. We never had any meaningful encounter before the Keyblade Graveyard. And when we did, I was meeting you for the first time, as someone who had met my friends and heeded their request to help me. But... thinking back on it, I realized that our meeting wouldn't have happened if we hadn't met here. My brief glimpse of you... was exactly the sort of thing that helped you make so many friends. If I hadn't suffered, so quickly after the first time I came to this island, I would have met you again. And you would have approached me, and asked me to be your friend.

"That was why you were able to save me."

His hands sank into the deep pockets of his hakama, drawing two items out - two items that he had been surprised to see again. Wood, carved roughly in the image of a Keyblade - snapped in two at the shaft, and worn by years lying on the ground of a camp in a faraway world.

"In your heart, accept this Key. I know that you have the making, and so hope that through this simple act of taking, it's wielder you shall one day be. And I hope that you will find me, friend - no ocean will contain you then. No more borders around, or below, or above, for you have always championed the ones you love."

Terra held the wooden pieces over the pit and released them, dropping them inside next to the flame-faced discus.

"Thank you for having a heart that bonds you to so many."

He stepped back to rejoin the others, and Aqua stepped forward.

"Sora. When I met you here, on this beach, I considered passing on to you the power of the Keyblade. But your friend had already received the power, and I had assumed that my friends and I each carrying a Keyblade of our own had been cause for the rift that tore between us. I didn't want that fate to befall you, and so instead I simply asked that you watch over him, and keep him safe. Keep his heart from falling to darkness. But I was mistaken - it wasn't the Keyblade that tore us apart. It was our own weakness. You earned a Keyblade of your own, and you made friends with so many others... and your heart was strong enough to maintain your friendships all the same.

"I wouldn't wish my life on you, and I am glad that it never befell you."

She reached into her pocket, drawing out a small item. A frame of silver, shaped like a star - in the center was a strange mark that she and her fellow students of Master Eraqus each wore. Its build was hollow, and from one point extended a long string.

"I made Wayfinders, and enchanted them with my magic, in the hopes that me and my friends would never be torn apart. But you... you showed me that whether or not your friendships hold has nothing to do with charms or magic. The Master is holding ours. I want you to take one of your own."

Aqua held the hollow charm over the pit and released it, dropping it inside to catch on the broken Key's pommel.

"Thank you for keeping your promise."

She stepped away as Kairi tried to fight back her tears, and Ventus stepped forward.

"Sora. I owe you my life, not once, but three times over. Long ago, my heart was fractured, and you saved it from fading completely. A few years later, you offered it refuge when it was broken again, and carried me throughout so many of your journeys. And then, on one of your journeys, you brought me back, when I was most needed. There aren't words to describe how grateful I am. And... there aren't any actions I can take to return the favour.

"But let me at least try."

He held out his hand, and a light shone above it - then it solidified, and there was a small pearl of light resting in his grip.

"My darkness was ripped away, and I was left with nothing but a weak light. Under the Master, alongside my friends, my light has grown stronger. Now let me offer you a light to guide your way - wherever you might go."

Ventus held out the light over the pit and released it, dropping it inside to roll to a stop.

"Thank you for always watching over me."

He stepped away to rejoin his friends, and King Mickey took his place.

"Sora. Gosh, I don't know what to say. You've gone through more than any nice boy oughta ever be put through. You've fought so many foes. You've been to so many worlds. You've put so many others before yourself. And... to be honest, part of it is kinda my fault. You found that Keyblade, so long ago. I asked my friends to find it, and stick with ya, no matter what. I almost feel like I made you go through all this - even though I know you'd say it wasn't a bad thing.

"But I'm really glad I got to meet you."

He reached into his pocket, drawing something out - it was a Keychain. Between each link was a four-pointed silver star, and the token at the end was a crescent moon.

"This was the Keychain on my first Keyblade, that Master Yen Sid gave to me. I let ya borrow it once before, after you woke up from that long sleep. Gosh, it was real nice of ya to give it back when we parted ways back then. But this time, I want you to be the one to take it with ya."

Mickey held out the chain over the pit and released it, dropping it inside to clatter into the sand.

"Thanks for doin' so much for so many people."

He stepped away with a quiet sigh, and Roxas stepped to the pit's edge.

"Sora. When I learned about you, during my time in the Organization, my life was falling apart in a really big way. All I knew was that I wanted to keep spending time with my friends, and someone was bent on stopping me from doing that. I was told that you were the key to... something I didn't understand. And I blamed you. Then I  _met_ you... and I realized that you didn't deserve my anger. You didn't see me as your Nobody, and you didn't see me as a tool. You saw me as a person. And because of that, I became my  _own_ person.

"And I owe you so much for that."

He reached into his pocket, drawing out something - a small wooden stick, emblazoned with the word  _WINNER_.

"Sea-salt ice cream. I was introduced to it on my first day as a Nobody, and I've kinda been addicted since then. If your stick says _WINNER_ , you get a free bar. But... I can't eat more than one at a time. When I got this, I wasted so much time because I wanted to give it to a friend. So... here's hoping you get the chance to redeem it."

Roxas held out the ice cream stick over the pit and released it, letting it bounce off the other items inside.

"Thank you for letting me be me."

He turned and approached his friends, and Xion took his place.

"Sora. I was... nothing. Less than nothing. I was just a faceless thing the Organization made as a contingency plan. A puppet. An _it_. But then... I spent time with Roxas. His heart is connected to yours, and through him, you helped me become something. Some _one_. You turned 'it' into 'she'. I took from you, as you did, and I'm sorry. But without you, without your willingness to let people you've never met have their own purpose, I wouldn't be here to miss you. I wouldn't have even been there, to take from you. I owe you so much.

"And I've tried to give everything back."

She held out her hand, and with a flash of light, a Keyblade appeared in it. Silver shaft, with a crown forming the teeth; a golden guard around her hand, and a silver chain.

"I was made to copy your power. But you can't fight fire with sparks. This Keyblade... it's nothing but a sham. Worthless. But even so, it's your weapon. And you deserve it back. I'm going to leave it here, in the hopes that you'll be able to carry it again someday."

Xion held out the Kingdom Key over the pit and released it, and it impaled in the dirt next to Way to the Dawn.

"Thank you for giving me life."

She made her way back to Roxas' side, and Donald stepped up to the pit.

"Sora. When we first met, in Traverse Town, I didn't care about you. I just cared about the Keyblade. The King told us to find the key bearer, and we found you. You were just a means to an end. But the more we travelled together, the more I came to enjoy our journey with you. When I tried to leave you behind, it hurt. And when I took it back, I decided I wasn't gonna leave you behind again.

"Some friend I am, can't even keep a promise to myself."

With a shimmer of light, he drew his staff, holding it between two hands.

"I know it's kinda dumb to get attached to these things. Disney Castle has two hundred of them lined up in the armoury. But when we went on all our journeys together, I always had this one. So if I can't go with you on this next journey, I want you to take it with you."

Donald held out his Mage's Staff over the pit and released it, and it fell to the ground next to the Kingdom Key.

"Thanks for not holding it against me."

He stepped back to rejoin the King, and Goofy stepped up to the pit.

"Sora. Do you remember our very first promise? 'Always smile'. I'm kinda surprised how well ya kept that promise. Ya know, it takes extra energy to smile. But you were always smilin'. Had to go through so much of the worst stuff before ya weren't. It's kinda contagious - your smile had me and Donald smilin' through every journey we went on. No frowning, no sad faces.

"Kinda wish we could do it as well as you did."

With a shimmer of light, he drew his shield, scratching at the back of his head.

"Gawrsh, I'm sorry if it kinda looks like I'm just copyin' Donald on this one. But me and him had the same idea. Always had the same stuff, on every journey. Never even got the chance to go switch it out. And hey, maybe you can use 'em. You're that kinda strong."

Goofy held out his Knight's Shield over the pit and released it, and it struck the ground next to the Kingdom Key.

"Thanks for always smilin'."

He joined Mickey and Donald, and Naminé took his place.

"Sora. When I first met you... I had ruined you. Remembering one thing leads to remembering another, and another, and another. I tore apart the chains of your memories, and replaced them with false memories. I was so desperate for friendship that I was willing to do anything. The Organization used me for that desperation, and I just went along with them without even trying to fight. I... I made myself the most important person in your life. Too lonely to care that I was pushing someone else out of that spot."

She turned towards Kairi briefly before turning back to the pit.

"But when you learned this, you didn't hold it against me. You knew the memories weren't real, and you didn't care. And when I was on the line, and you knew that I was no one important... You were ready to give up before you let me come to harm. You would knowingly shackle your heart with a chain of memories forged from lies, because there was someone at risk. For a moment, I was so happy."

Naminé took a deep breath.

"And then, I told you how I could bring your real memories back. It meant forgetting about me. It meant forgetting about everything. I gave you the choice - retain your memories of me, and let your real past be left to oblivion... or remember who you really were, and we would meet as strangers, in the hopes that we could be friends. You deserve to hear what I really felt. I gave you the offer... hoping you would choose to remember me.

"When you asked me to make you how you were, it broke my heart. But I deserved it. I had nearly doomed the worlds because I was desperate for a friend. And I tried to force the girl you care about most out of your heart, because I wanted to be with you. So I did as you asked. I restored your memories, just the way they were. It took a year... but before long, you didn't remember me. And the false memories I had made for you would never be remembered.

"They weren't in your heart anymore."

She held out her hand, and magic flowed from her palm. It trailed down to either side from her grip, extending to the ground before taking a concrete form - it was a chain of white.

"Now you have gone through so much more. The few memories I made for you can't compare to the myriad memories you have, that bind you to all these friends. So I give them to you again, now that your memory cannot hurt anyone. Something for you to enjoy - like a good book, or a quiet show. Because now I have real memories with you. You became my friend for real, just as we promised."

Naminé held out the chain of memories over the pit and released it, letting it pool in the sands.

"And I thank you for that."

She turned and stepped towards Kairi, who slowly approached the pit for herself.

"Sora..."

She gasped, her legs shaking, and Riku quickly stepped forward in case she should collapse. "Kairi, are you sure you're up to this?"

Kairi shook her head; she wouldn't pretend she had any confidence in her ability.

Riku set a hand on her shoulder. "You don't need to force yourself."

"I do," Kairi defied. "I have to do this."

A long moment passed; then Riku stepped back, and Kairi turned her gaze back to the grave she had dug.

"Sora... I don't have the words to thank you for everything you've done, for everyone. And I don't have the words to apologize for the fact that I don't care. I want you back. I'm not going to pretend that I don't. You've done so much for me. But from the moment you received the Keyblade, our time together was always so fleeting. You saved me when the Heartless took the islands, and I came back without you. You saved me when the Organization used me to anger you, and when we came home, you were made to leave again. I wanted to learn how to wield a Keyblade because I didn't want to need you to save me. I wanted to be able to wait for you, without worrying."

She shook her head, tears flying to either side.

"Then Xehanort took me, like I didn't even deserve to be called a guardian of light. He broke me away, and you saved me again. And this time, you left, and this time you would never return. I didn't want to believe it. I went searching for any way I might see you again. And I nearly doomed all the worlds because I couldn't accept your choice. You chose to save me. You wanted me to live, with all your heart. I journeyed across the worlds, and nearly submit to the shadow you cast, because I couldn't respect it."

Slowly, her left hand sank into her pocket, and she drew out the broken pieces of her lucky charm.

"...But I can respect it now."

Kairi's hand was trembling as she released the cracked thalassa shells, letting them fall in to join everyone else's gifts to the Final World.

"I love you too. And I'm sorry."

Her right hand reached forward, almost too weak to move, let alone to hold anything. Naminé came up on her side, and her hand fell in line with Kairi's; they took a deep breath, together, and then Destiny's Embrace appeared there.

Terra drew his Keyblade.

Ventus drew his.

Aqua drew hers.

Lea raised a hand over his shoulder, and his appeared with his fingers hooked in the guard.

Roxas drew a Keyblade in either hand, and offered the one in his left to Xion.

Mickey drew his star-dusted Kingdom Key.

Riku drew Bravehart.

And slowly, Kairi spoke.

"Thinking of you, wherever you are. We pray for our sorrows to end, and hope that our hearts will blend. I have already stepped forward to realize this wish. Starting a new journey may not be so hard, but no one returns from a journey the same as the way they left for it. All I can do is pray that your journey does not change you so much that I will not recognize you when I do finally see you again. But I promise you, I will not hurry to join you."

Naminé's magic seized the sand that Kairi had dug out, and slowly it began to fill the grave.

"There are many worlds, but they all share the same sky."

Every Keyblade was turned to the heavens.

"One sky..."

And light shone from each, extending into the night.

"...One destiny."


End file.
